How To Find Inspiration From Within? | Swami Mukundananda
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-U4M21OPIm4 Full Text : 1 It is said, count not your life in the number of breaths that you breathe, count your life in the number of moments that took your breath away https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-U4M21OPIm4&t=8 2 These were the moments when we were fully inspired, inspiration is the fuel that energizes our life, it empowers ordinary people to put in their best and become experts in their respective fields and lack of inspiration transforms geniuses into ordinary people. Hence inspiration is such a vital ingredient, if we are inspired, the biggest obstacle seems puny, and when uninspired, a tiny difficulty seems like an unsurmountable hurdle - that is why somebody said that you may lose everything in life except your enthusiasm and you will gain it all back again but that person who has lost his enthusiasm, he is truly bankrupt https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-U4M21OPIm4&t=23 3 Henry David Thoreau said nobody is as old as he who has outgrown enthusiasm, so whether it is a material endeavor or a spiritual endeavor, enthusiasm makes the difference between failure and success https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-U4M21OPIm4&t=106 4 that is why Jesus told his followers, be either hot or cold, if you are lukewarm, I spit you out. The yoga darshan says “verse”, in your pursuit of the Supreme Goal (God), endeavor with all your enthusiasm https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-U4M21OPIm4&t=133 5 the great sage Ramakrishna Paramahamsa, related 50 years ago in india. Farming used to be done by the bulls, so farmers would bring these young bulls to the fair to sell them and customers would come to purchase but how do they come to know which bull is energetic and will do its work ? So the customer would kick the sitting bull in the back on its tail, if the bull continued to sit, the farmer would decide this bull is no good and if the bull got up, the farmer would think this bull has got energy in it, it is worthwhile and will do good work https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-U4M21OPIm4&t=166 6 so inspiration has been recognized as the ingredient for success in all fields. Is it something that we are born with ? No, we can change our inspiration, sometimes circumstances are responsible for it https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-U4M21OPIm4&t=221 7 there was once a factory worker, he used to work in the evening shift from 4 p.m. till midnight. The factory was an hour away from his house and he would walk down to it, at midnight he would return walking, there was a graveyard in the way, so on this night he decided to take the shortcut, he walked through that graveyard and saved a full half an hour. Nothing untoward happened in the graveyard so he thought it safe and he can do it every day. Now daily after his factory shift he would take the shortcut. One day unknown to him a new grave had been dug, right on the path, it was a moonless cloudy pitch dark night. Walking along the path, he suddenly fell into the grave, now he realized that he has fallen into a new grave, he tried to claw his way out but found it was difficult, it was seven feet deep so he decided to spend the night there and next day somebody would come to take him out. A few moments went by and a drunkard came that way, the drunkard with his intellect Destroyed, also fell into the grave. Now the drunkard became scared and came to his senses, I'm in a grave in this graveyard on the other side of midnight, I hope no spirits make their appearance, let me get out of here as quickly as Possible, he was trying to claw his way up but finding it impossible and this man sitting on the other side was watching the drama. So he decided to convey his wisdom to the drunkard and unannounced he came from the back and battered him, my dear fellow. What does the drunkard find, there's a hand on his back, that man announced there is no use trying, you cannot get out. The drunkard was scared out of his wits, suddenly he found the inspiration to get out, he leapt a few more inches until he reached the edge and pulled himself out. Now that inspiration within him triggered his save. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-U4M21OPIm4&t=250 8 so it's not that people don't have the ability to be inspired. Factory managers say their workers are uninspired but see them on Friday afternoons, when they get out of the factory, how inspired they are ! So this is a quality that we can develop within ourselves, how do we tap into this ? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-U4M21OPIm4&t=418 9 factors were analyzed that motivate or demotivate people. It was found that if the boss has been too harsh on the Subordinate, it is demotivating but the same situation seemed to motivate others. One man says okay now I will not give my best, the other says really I'll put in so much of hard work that my boss will have to accept that I am good. Now what motivates them and what demotivates https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-U4M21OPIm4&t=449 10 in Toronto, social scientists interviewed two brothers, one of them was a drunkard a derelict (a person abandoned by society, especially a person without a permanent home and means of support), he had psoriasis ( Psoriasis is a skin disease that causes a rash with itchy, scaly patches ) of the liver he was a wife beater, and had repeatedly gone to prison. And his younger brother, his life was a complete success. So the social scientists asked the elder brother, why are you in such a mess ? he said what else could I be, my father was a drunkard, he was an alcoholic, wife-beater, I saw him make his life such a mess, I grew up in those circumstances, how could I be any better ? The scientist said, you know he has got a point. Yhey asked the younger brother, how come you have got it all right - your health is good, you don't have vices, you have a wonderful harmonious family, you are well praised in your work, what is the secret of your success ? He said, how could I not do it like this, I saw my father make all the mistakes and there was no way I could repeat them. The scientist said, you know he has also got a point. Now in the same environment, one is getting motivated the other is getting Demotivated, what then is the secret of motivation ? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-U4M21OPIm4&t=491 11 This lesson was taught to me by my spiritual master many decades ago when he called me to his monastery and he asked me to study the scriptures so that I may distribute this Knowledge. Subsequently as a part of my study I felt that I should also practice public speaking because I would need that skill later. The only problem was that there was no public in that monastery, so I would try speaking to a wall and there can be nothing more demotivating than speaking to a wall because it will not even say, I don't like the joke that you are saying - so after 5-10 minutes I would become uninspired and stop. I went to my guru and said can you please designate somebody who will sit and listen to me for an hour every day while I speak to him. He utilized that situation as an opportunity to teach me a life lesson, he Said, look my child, inspiration or the lack of it don't have to come from the outside they can all happen from the inside https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-U4M21OPIm4&t=662 12 Remember this formula all your life, if you develop an intense desire, you will then make a firm resolve. When you have a firm resolve, you will put in immense effort and that is how you will become but if your desire is weak, the resolve will be mild, the effort will be marginal and that is how you will become https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-U4M21OPIm4&t=758 13 When I received that instruction from my guru, I said now I need to follow it, come hell or high water. I understood that carelessness is coming from the inside and I have the ability to remove it. After that I was able to give talks to walls, to bushes, to corn fields, to water canals, to anything - it became the easiest thing because I tapped in to the inner source https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-U4M21OPIm4&t=794 14 so if we wish to lead an inspired life, we must learn to develop the quality of inner motivation and how do you get motivated from within ? Give yourself a strong reason, a strong why. When you have a strong reason for doing something, you automatically become motivated. If you wish to be inspired to follow that healthy diet, if you wish to be inspired to stick to your daily regimen of exercise and yoga every day, convince yourself of the benefits you will get from that regimen, convince yourself of the harm you will cause yourself by not sticking to the regimen, that is “Why Power” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-U4M21OPIm4&t=827 15 this “Why Power” is extremely powerful. We people think the mind is not under my control but that's not really true. If the intellect decides something is important, it has the ability to hold the mind in its control. Consider for example you have a weakness for some delicacy, some butterscotch or chocolate chip ice cream and you have been fasting for two days, after two days your friend brings for you the ice cream. Now the mind yearns for it, I want that, the mind asks the intellect there is great pleasure in front of me, can we indulge ? the intellect sanctions, go ahead, and the intellect has instructed the mind the mind has instructed the hand and the hand has put the spoon there and it's bringing the spoon to the mouth. At that moment, if your second friend comes and says what are you doing, you wish to die ? what do you mean? I mean, there is poison in it potassium cyanide, intellect says potassium cyanide ? this is dangerous, throw it, the intellect instructs the mind, the mind has instructed the hand and the hand has chucked that ice-cream. This person has suddenly got the ability to resist, where did it come from ? it was the power of the intellect over the mind. You want to test his detachment ? offer him a million dollars, sir, eat it, I will give you a million dollars, he says what will a dead man do with the million dollars, I don't want it. Oh but have you seen anybody put poison in it ? No, have you ever seen poison in your life ? No, But then my friend has told me there is poison. Is your friend absolutely reliable and honest and trustworthy ? No, I have caught him telling lies a few times, a friend who is not completely trustworthy, his one statement enabled you to desist from indulging in that object of pleasure which was the ice cream merely by the conviction of the intellect https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-U4M21OPIm4&t=892 16 so if we can tap into the “Why Power”, that will then enable us to enthuse ourselves and bring out the best in us in the desired task and enable us to bring out the best we have to perform the task at hand. How then can we develop this “Why Power”, how then can we convince our intellect to tap in to this vast reservoir of inspiration, we will discuss this some other time https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-U4M21OPIm4&t=1070 Transcript 0:08 it is said count not your life in the 0:14 number of breaths that you breathe count 0:19 your life in the number of moments that 0:23 took your breath away these were the 0:28 moments when we were fully inspired 0:34 inspiration is the fuel that energizes 0:39 our life it empowers ordinary people to 0:44 put in their best and become experts in 0:49 their respective fields and lack of 0:53 inspiration transforms geniuses into 0:58 ordinary people hence inspiration is 1:03 such a vital ingredient if we are 1:08 inspired the biggest obstacle seems puny 1:14 what is this 1:16 and when uninspired a tiny difficulty 1:21 seems like an unsurmountable hurdle that 1:27 is why somebody said that you may lose 1:32 everything in life but your enthusiasm 1:36 and you will gain it all back again but 1:42 that person who has lost his enthusiasm 1:46 now he is truly bankrupt Henry David 1:53 Thoreau said nobody is as old as he who 1:58 has outgrown enthusiasm so whether it is 2:03 a material endeavor or a spiritual 2:07 endeavor 2:08 enthusiasm makes the difference between 2:13 failure and success that is why Jesus 2:20 told his followers be either hot or cold 2:25 if you are lukewarm I spit you out the 2:30 yoga darshan says “verse”, in your pursuit of the supreme 2:40 goal endeavor with all your enthusiasm 2:46 the great sage ramakrishna paramahamsa 2:49 related 50 years ago in india farming 2:55 used to be done by the Bulls so farmers 2:59 would bring these young Bulls to the 3:03 fair to sell them and customers would 3:07 come to purchase but how do they come to 3:11 know which bull is energetic and will do 3:14 its work so the customer would kick the 3:19 Sitting Bull in the back on its tail if 3:24 the bull continued to sit the farmer 3:29 would decide this bull is no good and if 3:33 the bull got up the farmer would think 3:37 this bull has got energy in it it is 3:41 worthwhile and will do good work so 3:46 inspiration has been recognized as the 3:49 ingredient for success in all fields is 3:54 it something that we are born with no we 4:01 can change our inspiration sometimes 4:06 circumstances are responsible for it 4:10 there was once a factory worker he used 4:14 to work in the evening shift from 4 p.m. 4:18 till midnight 4:19 the factory was an hour away from his 4:22 house and he would walk down to it at 4:25 midnight he would return walking there 4:30 was a graveyard in the way so on this 4:34 night he decided to take the shortcut he 4:38 walked through that graveyard and saved 4:42 a full half an hour nothing untoward 4:46 happened in the graveyard so he thought 4:49 it safe and he can do it every day now 4:53 Daily after his factory shift he would 4:56 take the shortcut 4:58 one day unknown to him a new grave had 5:02 been dug right on the path it was a 5:07 moonless cloudy night pitch dark walking 5:12 along the path he suddenly fell into the 5:16 grave now he realized that he has fallen 5:21 into a new grave he tried to claw his 5:25 way out but found it was difficult it 5:28 was seven feet deep so he decided to 5:31 spend the night there and next day 5:34 somebody would come to take him out a 5:36 few moments went by and a drunkard came 5:41 that way the drunkard with his intellect 5:45 destroyed also fell into the grave now 5:50 the drunkard became scared and came to 5:53 his senses I'm in a grave in this 5:56 graveyard on the other side of midnight 5:59 I hope no spirits make their appearance 6:04 let me get out of here as quickly as 6:07 possible he was trying to claw his way 6:10 up but finding it impossible and this 6:13 man sitting on the other side was 6:14 watching the drama so he decided to 6:18 convey his wisdom to the drunkard 6:21 and unannounced he came from the back 6:23 and battered him My dear fellow what 6:28 does the drunkard find there's a hand on 6:31 his back that man announced there is no 6:35 use trying you cannot get out 6:37 the drunkard was scared out of his wits 6:42 suddenly he found the inspiration to get 6:46 out he leapt a few more inches until he 6:49 reached the edge and pulled himself out 6:53 now that inspiration within him changed 6:58 so it's not that people don't have the 7:02 ability to be inspired factory managers 7:06 say their workers are uninspired but see 7:10 them on Friday afternoons when they get 7:12 out of the factory how inspired they are 7:15 so this is a quality that we can develop 7:20 within ourselves how do we tap into this 7:29 factors were analyzed that motivate or 7:33 demotivate people it was found that if the 7:38 boss has been too harsh on the 7:40 subordinate it is demotivating if the 7:44 boss has criticized it is demotivating 7:48 but the same situation seemed to 7:51 motivate others one man says okay now I 7:55 will not give my best the other says 7:57 really I'll put in so much of hard work 8:01 that my boss will have to accept that I 8:05 am good now what motivates them and what 8:09 Demotivates 8:11 in Toronto social scientists interviewed 8:17 two brothers one of them was a drunkard 8:23 a derelict he had psoriasis of the liver 8:26 he was a wife beater and had repeatedly 8:30 gone to prison 8:32 and his younger brother his life was a 8:35 complete success so the social 8:38 scientists asked the elder brother and 8:41 why are you in such a mess he said what 8:46 else could I be my father was a drunkard 8:50 he was an alcoholic wife-beater I saw 8:55 him make his life such a mess I grew up 8:58 in those circumstances how could I be 9:02 any better the scientist said you know 9:05 he has got a point they asked the 9:09 younger brother how come you have got it 9:11 all right your health is good you don't 9:13 have vices you have a wonderful 9:16 harmonious family you are well praised 9:20 in your work what is the secret of your 9:23 success he said how could I not do it 9:28 like this I saw my father make all the 9:31 mistakes and there was no way I could 9:34 repeat them the scientist said you know 9:38 he has also got a point 9:40 now in the same environment one is 9:44 getting motivated the other is getting 9:48 demotivated what then is the secret of 9:53 motivation the point to understand is 9:58 there are two kinds of motivation the 10:03 first is external motivation and the 10:07 second is inner motivation external 10:12 motivation means to be inspired by 10:16 rewards that others offer if your boss 10:21 says work hard and you will get a 10:24 promotion that is an external motivation 10:27 now in that case the key to your 10:30 inspiration lies in the hands of others 10:33 tomorrow he does not give you the 10:36 promotion you get demotivated 10:40 however if we are internally motivated 10:44 we can always tap into that source 10:48 irrespective of the external environment 10:52 so as we grow and mature in life this 10:57 inner motivation is the one that we need 11:02 to reach out this lesson was taught 11:06 to me by my spiritual master many 11:10 decades ago when he called me to his 11:15 monastery and he asked me to study the 11:20 scriptures so that I may distribute this 11:23 knowledge subsequently as a part of my 11:28 study I felt that I should also practice 11:31 public speaking because I would need 11:34 that skill later the only problem was 11:38 that there was no public in that 11:40 monastery so I would try speaking to a 11:44 wall and there can be nothing more 11:48 demotivating than speaking to a wall 11:51 because it will not even say I don't 11:54 like the joke that you are saying so 11:57 after 5-10 minutes I would become 12:00 uninspired and stop I went to my guru 12:05 and said can you please designate 12:09 somebody who will sit and listen to me 12:12 for an hour every day while I speak to 12:15 him he utilized that situation as an 12:20 opportunity to teach me a life lesson he 12:25 said look my child inspiration or the 12:30 lack of it don't have to come from the 12:33 outside they can all happen from the 12:38 inside remember this formula all your 12:42 life if you develop an intense desire 12:48 you will then make a firm resolve 12:52 when you have a firm resolve you will 12:56 put in immense effort and that is how 12:59 you will become but if your desire is 13:04 weak the resolve will be mild the effort 13:10 will be marginal and that is how you 13:14 will become when I received that 13:18 instruction from my guru I said now I 13:22 need to follow it come hell or high 13:25 water I understood that carelessness is 13:29 coming from the inside and I have the 13:32 ability to remove it after that I was 13:36 able to give talks to walls to bushes to 13:40 corn fields to water canals to anything 13:44 it became the easiest thing because I 13:47 tapped in to the inner source so if we 13:54 wish to lead an inspired life we must 13:59 learn to develop the quality of inner 14:03 motivation and how do you get motivated 14:06 from within give yourself a strong 14:12 reason a strong why when you have a 14:18 strong reason for doing something you 14:22 automatically become motivated if you 14:25 wish to be inspired to follow that 14:28 healthy diet if you wish to be inspired 14:32 to stick to your daily regimen of 14:35 exercise and yoga every day convince 14:38 yourself of the benefits you will get 14:41 from that regimen convince yourself of 14:45 the harm you will cause yourself by not 14:50 sticking to the regimen 14:52 that is “Why Power” this “Why Power” is 14:58 extremely powerful we people think the 15:03 mind is not under my control but that's 15:08 not really true if the intellect decides 15:12 something is important it has the 15:15 ability to hold the mind in its control 15:21 consider for example you have a weakness 15:26 for some delicacy some butterscotch or 15:32 chocolate chip ice cream and you have 15:35 been fasting for two days after two days 15:39 your friend brings for you the ice cream 15:42 now the mind yearns for it 15:47 I want that the mind asks the intellect 15:52 there is great pleasure in front of me 15:55 can we indulge the intellect sanctions 15:59 go ahead and the intellect has 16:02 instructed the mind the mind has 16:03 instructed the hand and the hand has put 16:06 the spoon there and it's bringing the 16:08 spoon to the mouth at that moment if 16:11 your second friend comes and says what 16:15 are you doing you wish to die what 16:19 do you mean I mean there is poison in it 16:22 potassium cyanide, intellect says 16:25 potassium cyanide ? 16:27 this is dangerous throw it the intellect 16:30 instructs the mind the mind has 16:32 instructed the hand and the hand has 16:34 chucked that ice-cream here this person 16:38 has suddenly got the ability to resist 16:43 where did it come from it was the power 16:47 of the intellect over the mind 16:51 you want to test his detachment offer 16:55 him a million dollars sir eat it I will 16:58 give you a million dollars he says what 17:02 will a dead man do with the million 17:04 dollars I don't want it oh but have you 17:08 seen anybody put poison in it no have 17:13 you ever seen poison in your life no 17:16 then my friend has told me there is 17:19 poison is your friend absolutely 17:24 reliable and honest and trustworthy no 17:27 no I have caught him telling lies a few 17:29 times a friend who is not completely 17:33 trustworthy his one statement enabled 17:38 you to desist from indulging in that 17:42 object of pleasure which was the ice 17:45 cream merely by the conviction of the 17:50 intellect so if we can tap into the 17:54 “Why Power” that will then enable us 18:01 to enthuse ourselves and bring out the 18:07 best in us in the desired task and 18:13 enable us to bring out the best we have 18:17 to perform the task at hand how then can 18:26 we develop this why power how then can 18:33 we convince our intellect to tap in to 18:41 this vast reservoir of inspiration we 18:47 will discuss this some other time
