What is the secret of your joy?
Lao Tzu said “Oh, that.”
For this you do one thing all of you - start today okay?
This is simple exercise everybody must do
–at the end of the day, you sit in your bed and look back on the whole day.
This happened – you’ve heard of Lao Tzu?
Lao Tzu?
Lao Tzu is a celebrated Zen master today,
even then he gathered a certain number of disciples around him.
It’s part of the Zen tradition that when the master or the guru is dying, people gather around for a final message.
So at the age of eighty-three or eighty-four, he was passing,
so people gathered around him, and asked him, “Master, what is the secret of your joy?”
You know, he faced lot of extreme situations in his life.
He was accused of things that he had never thought of, and he went through troubles.
So people asked, “You went through so many things, but you were always joyful.
What is the secret of your joy?”
Lao Tzu said, “Oh that! It’s just that every day in the morning when I woke up, I used to get a question.
The question is 'today shall I be joyful or miserable?'
Till now I just happened to choose joy, that’s all.”
So have you made your choice I am asking?
Every day in the morning,
if a question comes to you, I will come and ask you a question every day in the morning,
“Today, you’re going to be joyful or miserable,” what's your choice?
Participants: Joyful.
Sadhguru: You must make this choice every day,
“Today, I am going to be joyful.”
Joy is not a goal by itself.
It is just that when you’re joyful, you are pleasant to the world.
When you are joyful, you are sensible in your head.
When you are joyful, you will not do stupid things against yourself.
There is nobody who’s not been happy, everybody’s been happy,
but the problem is they are not able to maintain it, that’s all.
So you don’t have to enforce any resolutions upon yourself, just little tools to make sure that you don’t sink.
Suppose, let’s say your life is done.
You are on your death bed, tomorrow you’re going to die.
If you look back and see, is it all worthwhile?
Have you done things that you really wanted to do?
Don’t look at it at the end of your life, you must look at it at the beginning of your life.
Suppose you are on your death bed, you’re going to die – may be you lived a hundred years
– but look back and see, has life been worthwhile, have you done things that really matter to you or no,
because most people get truthful only if death is eminent.
Otherwise, they know how to lie to themselves and to everybody.
Most people tell the truth only when you put a gun to their head unfortunately (Laughs).
I am saying don’t wait for somebody else to put the gun, you put it tonight and watch,
“Suppose I am going to die now,
have I done things that I really… worthwhile in my life,
things that I could be proud of, things that are worth spending my life upon
– has my life been done this way?”
If you just look at this, you will make an impact on the society, whatever you do.
Whatever you do, you will make an impact.
We do not know what you can do and cannot do in your life.
Whether you are going to become the richest man in the world, or the most beautiful woman on the planet,
you’re going to climb Mt. Everest, or you’re going to beat Mr. Bolt in a hundred-meter race,
I don’t know about these things,
but every one of you can strive to become a wonderful human being and nobody can deny that to you.
Nor people, nor world’s situations, nor inclement weather can deny this to you
that you want to be a wonderful human being – nobody to stop you.
So I want you to do a simple process
– write down three things, write down three things when you go home,
whatever you think makes a human being into a wonderful human being, just three things,
and make it a reality in your life, what you think is the highest.
Don’t do what I want, please do what you want.
In your life, if you do not do what you want, it’ll become a wasted life.
You don’t have to do what somebody else wants, but
three things that you think will make a human being into a truly wonderful human being
– these three things make it a reality.
As it is said, “A man is ill only because he does not know how to be still,”
because in stillness, you are in touch with a dimension way beyond creation.
So if one has to attain to that grace, at least a certain amount of stillness has to enter your life.
For this to happen, a certain level of silence has to enter your life.
If right now it is not coming, at least practicing a little bit of moun.
In an hour, if you’re speaking 1573 words right now…
How many maa?
How many words do you spit out in a minute?
Participant: 1573.
Sadhguru: 1573, you’re actually doing that many? I thought that’s impossible.
Participant: I speak more than that.
Sadhguru: Okay, I believe you.
So whatever number you’re doing,
see if you can articulate the same things that you are saying with half the number of words.
Suddenly you will become extremely conscious of everything.
Right now, a oral diarrhea is happening.
You’re doing 1573, it’s diarrhea, okay?
Now, if you have to hold back half the words, and still say the same things,
now you have to be very conscious otherwise, you cannot say it.
Just try this and see, tomorrow, one day, hmm?
In an hour, normally what number of words you utter, make it half.
Don’t curtail your activity, still say the same things, but with half the words.
How wonderful the whole world will feel you know?
World will be a wonderful place I am telling you tomorrow, if everybody does this. Hmm?
Many marriages will be saved.
This is simple exercise everybody must do
–at the end of the day you sit in your bed and look back on the whole day from the morning you got up,
how you’ve been going around.
You will see ninety percent of the time, you’re quite stupid.
I am being generous with percentage, believe me.
If you’re given little work, if you’re just given little responsibility, suddenly you become so important.
You become bigger than the universe suddenly.
How many times you expanded beyond the size of the universe,
if you look at it, you will see most of the time it’s bloated.
How many times you became immortal, that is you’re not conscious of your mortality,...
and how many times did you walk around looking at people and things around you
without any sense of involvement, just three things you watch out,
you will see you will have to laugh through the night.
Don’t start crying.
Just learn to laugh at your stupidity, you will see all the rubbish you carry will turn into manure very fast,
and manure is good for growth you know.
Yes.
In the next twelve months, you make yourself in such a way that you are not the issue in your life, not at all.
Hmm?
Can you do this to yourself, you deserve this I am telling you that you’re not the trouble.
Only if somebody is causing trouble to you, some trouble in your life.
If you sit alone, you’re never the trouble –make yourself like that.
For this you do one thing, all of you, start today, okay?
One thing that you don’t want yourself to be, one small aspect, ok?
Drop it today!
Every full moon day, drop one more thing.
However small it is, but concrete step, not big things.
“No, I will give up my anger.” I don’t believe such nonsense.
You can say, “From now on if I get angry, I will just shut my mouth, I won’t say anything.”
This is doable. Yes?
“I will not get angry” is not… right now not doable, isn't it?
So like this one concrete step every month, you take about yourself,
something that you do not like, something that you feel is not necessary for your life,
one little thing, drop every month.
In 12 months’ time, you will be a wonderful human being that you are not a issue.
Do that to yourself, you deserve this and it’s worth it, isn't it?