Your Destiny is Hidden in Your Daily Routine - Part 1

Posted on Jul 04, 2020 by Harsh Vardhan (Founder Director & Trainer)

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Is destiny predetermined or can we make it? What do saints say about it?

Paramhansa Yogananda famously stated that, "It is not your passing thoughts or brilliant ideas so much as your plain everyday habits that control your life.... Live simply."

A successful life need not have complex manoeuvres of excellent performance in all arenas of seemingly unfathomable heights. Success is not what comes after winning over others or standing head and shoulders above the rest but by extending the periphery of your own limitations. Once you take care of the micro, the macro is taken care automatically.

Lao Tzu, a Chinese philosopher in 6 BC said, "Watch your thoughts, they become your words; watch your words, they become your actions; watch your actions, they become your habits; watch your habits, they become your character; watch your character, it becomes your destiny."

There is often a debate amongst people whether destiny is pre written or destiny can be created. So much so that people even question if there is any need for action on an individual's part, if everything is pre-decided. On the other hand, the action oriented people believe the harder you work, the luckier you get. The truth lies somewhere in between. Both are right.

What we have today, where we are born, to whom we are born, whether we are rich or poor, whether we are short or tall, whether we are intelligent or not: whatever comes to your mind as something you are born with, is past karma therefore destiny. What we currently have, is our starting point for the challenge called Life. Our current birth's strengths and weaknesses are determined by what we did in the past.

Now what we do with them in this incarnation will determine partially our current life and all future incarnations. So today is the day that gives us power of creating our future destiny. This future pertains to our current lifetime still to come and our consequent births. We are the creator of our destiny.

Sri Yukteswar Giri said, "Forget the past. The vanished lives of all men are dark with many shames. Human conduct is ever unreliable until man is anchored in the Divine. Everything in future will improve if you are making a spiritual effort now."

We are certainly governed by the drag of past karmas. But at the same time nothing stops us from doing hard work. The benefits accruing out of perseverance are entirely our's. The so called unlucky man can also win when he works relentlessly applying free-will methodically. God did not prevent us from achieving goals if we pitched in our dedication, concentration, effort and daily discipline.

Swami Vivekananda said, "Take up one idea. Make that one idea your life—think of it, dream of it, live on that idea. Let the brain, muscles, nerves, every part of your body, be full of that idea, and just leave every other idea alone. This is the way to success."