We have already talked about how we need to discern between right and wrong, true and false. When we do that correctly, we automatically make the right decisions. When we make those decisions, we face the consequences of our actions, but it isn’t just about facing the consequences, but also about conquering our vices/weaknesses. Unless we do that, how can we confront injustice in the world?
Unaware, sometimes what we do is we start confronting (facing) people’s habits/values. We say things like, “Why should we tolerate this? Why should we keep quiet?” So we start confronting other peoples’ habits/values, and we start tolerating their wrong and unethical behaviors. For instance, if there is abuse somewhere, or corruption in family business, it can go on for years. If you ask one of the family members why they are allowing it to go on, they might say they have to “adjust” to it and “tolerate” whatever is happening there. That’s where we are not using the power to confront the right way.
We need to face others’ opinions. Others can make fun of us, they can criticize us. They can introduce obstacles in our path, or they can try to stop us. We need to face all of it because we discerned the correct path and made a decision. Whatever the consequence of our decision, we need to face it.
When we invoke positivity, purity, and divinity within us, it does not mean we keep tolerating everything or that we keep quiet and “adjust” with everyone and everything that happens. When doing this, we need to be careful if something wrong is happening. We are not to tolerate or accept any unethical practices or injustice. By not using the power to confront, we might say we have the power to accept and tolerate everything, but by doing this, we might inadvertently endorse the wrong practices. When we start tolerating other peoples’ wrong behaviors and decisions, it affects our destiny.
We are not to stop at confronting people — we need to confront them and stop their wrong behavior or unethical practices. We need the power to face a lot of events and situations in life, but before that, we need to first face our own weaknesses. We need to confront our vices, weaknesses, and bad habits. We are not going to accept, adjust, and tolerate our own weaknesses. Facing it means noticing it and stopping it. Don’t acclimate to it and let it stay within you. Let’s not say to ourselves it will go away slowly by justifying it as an old habit. By saying so, we are passively giving in to that habit/value and we are letting it remain. For instance, if we decided to meditate and exercise every morning, if we give up and become careless and said to ourselves, “It is alright, it is a habit, it happens”, then we are simply deluding ourselves.
When we conquer our weaknesses, our power to walk on the right path and to confront the wrong happening around us will increase. Someone who abides their own weaknesses cannot notice and confront mistakes in other people. When their own awareness and energy is depleted, how will they confront someone else? When they cannot confront, how will they bring about change? That is why we tend to say, “What can be done when the world/society/system/organization is like this?” By saying this, we are diverting the blame and not taking responsibility to face it, challenge it, and change it. The power to confront is quite important because the more peer pressure increases, the more we crave people’s approval. In this state, we cannot stand for what is right, and we cannot face what is wrong.
Let’s not work around our weaknesses. Instead, let’s face them and stop them. Let’s not be careless or lazy with the self. Let’s not postpone saying, “It will happen gradually. I am on a journey, it takes time”. No, we have to finish because if we do let the one weakness slide, then that will lead to other weaknesses. We need to conquer all our vices/weaknesses because even if one weakness remains as-is, then all other weaknesses come back. Sometimes, just one weakness within us is enough to overshadow or hide all our good qualities because that one weakness overpowers us. Let’s not allow any weakness to remain within. Not out of pressure, but by paying attention, we need to face that vice and abolish it.
If we want to overcome our weaknesses, then we need to eradicate our biggest or main vice — our body consciousness or ego. It is the root of all other vices. We usually identify ourselves with, “I am this body, I am this name, I am this label of relationship, I am this position, I am this profession, I am this age, etc.” Where there is body consciousness, other vices like anger, lust, greed, and jealously show up automatically. We need to remind ourselves that we are none of these, but they are ours (but they are not “us”). We need to remind ourselves we are a divine, pure, and peaceful soul. Practicing this throughout the whole day will shift us from body consciousness to soul consciousness. This means we have eaten up our vice of ego, and when that happens, all other vices are automatically removed. When we are not body conscious, ego cannot exist. We will not feel bad about anything, and we will not feel angry or hurt.
We should use our power to discern what to tolerate and what to confront, which means we need to tolerate others’ habits/values and face unethical practices. If gone unchecked, we will only confront others’ habits/values and tolerate and acclimate to unethical practices.
We need to let go of people’s behaviors and past incidents. We need to tolerate other people’s habits/values and confront what’s unethical, unfair, and unjust. We have to be clear about when to tolerate and when to confront. We have to tolerate other peoples’ habits/values and accept that their habits/values are different from ours and adjust with them.
When there is anything unethical happening in society, we need to stand our ground and confront it with dignity. We need to be clear about how to confront it. We are standing against a wrong practice, which means we will not support or be a part of the wrong that is happening. We will walk on the right path. It means never compromising on what we believe is right. Others around us may be doing the wrong thing, but that shouldn’t be reason enough to do the same.
Sometimes we voice our opinion about something that is not right, but we don’t think about rectifying it. In other words, we think about the problem, but we don’t think about the solution. We can’t only keep complaining about what is wrong. We have to start working on the solution and work toward what is right, because only by creating what is right is the wrong thing eradicated. This is the power to confront.
We need to check throughout the day what we should accept, tolerate, and let go of, but we also need to be mindful of what to confront. There should be no confusion between them because it is a delicate balance of love and discipline. It means not only accepting and giving love, but also standing up for what is right and disciplining ourselves. By not doing that, we risk ruining our own destiny. While love is about practicing tolerance, self-discipline is the power to face ourselves and others.
We need to check ourselves for any long-standing inherent weakness that needs to be eradicated. We need to ask ourselves if there are any unethical practices that we have accepted or acclimated to. We need to face it, because only by transforming ourselves can we transform the world.
Let us eat away our body consciousness and ego to completely destroy them.
