Recognise your latent talents

Children, when we encounter adverse circumstances, there are three ways in which we can try accepting them and continue moving ahead without flagging. We can imagine that God has created these circumstances so that we can recognise our latent talents and galvanise them into action. Or, we can think that the present experience is teaching us a lesson, making us more prepared to rise above the trials and tribulations we might face in the future. Or else, we must see the present experience as a consequence of past actions performed carelessly and egoistically, and thus resolve to act from now on with utmost awareness.

God has blessed us all with innumerable capabilities. However, many of these talents are lying dormant. Since we are not striving conscientiously to awaken them, God will create situations to activate them. We have no right to say that the situations should unfold in a particular way. Nature has arranged painful and intense experiences for all creatures. All of us must undergo them, for they are integral to our growth.
When a caterpillar has metamorphosed into a butterfly, it needs to emerge from the protective cocoon.

However, by the time it has broken through the cocoon, it would have undergone tremendous pain. At first, the caterpillar will barely be able to push its head through the small hole it makes in the cocoon. In order to squeeze its entire body through, the caterpillar will have to exert a tremendous effort. Owing to the pressure, a certain fluid in its body will be released into its wings, giving them strength. Its body will also be fortified. It is this arduous effort that enables the butterfly to fly freely later. Therefore, when we encounter obstacles, we should see them as means God has created to rouse the talents lying dormant in us. 

Usually, when we are sad, our mind becomes weak and we become utterly defeated. However, we should learn big lessons from such experiences. One who acts cautiously and patiently can avoid significant dangers and undergo trials and tribulations with relative ease. For example, if a thorn has pricked a man’s foot, he will remove the thorn, and continue walking very carefully, aware that there might be more thorns on the path. He then notices a cobra. Because he was walking alertly, he was able to avoid getting bitten by it. Although the prick of the thorn was painful, it proved to be a blessing later.

When we encounter adverse circumstances, we usually try to avoid accepting responsibility for them. Many students who fail their examinations say, “I answered all the questions properly, but the examiner failed me deliberately.” Or, they might say, “My folks at home did not give me the necessary time and space to study properly.” Or, they will say, “During my study time, people at home kept asking me to do something or the other.” In this way, they give lame excuses to avoid owning up to their responsibility. Whatever they might say, the responsibility for their failure lies squarely with them; it is the result of their carelessness. It is foolish to blame others, fate or God whenever we encounter obstacles and then feel helpless and exhausted.

The present crisis is the fruit of our past bad actions; if we act with due caution and alertness, we can overcome any predicament—we should move forward with this faith. Even those who have received a sentence of life imprisonment for murder can, through good behaviour in jail, become eligible for early release. Similarly, by performing good deeds, we can even alter destiny.

There is a valuable lesson to be learned from every experience, whether good or bad. However, we usually try to run away whenever we encounter adverse circumstances. Instead, we should learn from even the most bitter experience, and by striving with alertness, patience and discrimination, we can overcome any situation.

The writer is a world-renowned spiritual leader and humanitarian