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The other day in his discourse a saint said, “You minus others are incomplete.” This five-word-statement implies a lot of things a few of which we are listing below:
You are not you alone. You are a part of a very very big ‘whole’ called the world, which consists of various beings and things. You are closely connected with them as a part is connected with its whole. A part is not complete without its whole. You are not complete without the world.
You should always be considerate towards others. ‘Others’ means all—known or unknown, good or bad, friends or foes.
You should not be satisfied when your personal wants are provided. You should also think about those similar wants of others which have not been met. You must concern yourself about them.
You should not live in isolation from others. The doors of your life should be kept open for the entry of all those who are needy and helpless.
More important than you are others. They should be loved, respected and revered to the greatest extent. Those who are not considerate towards you, should not be ignored or hated but should be won over through your love.
Let others share your joys. Be prepared to share their sorrows.
Always think – your things are not yours. They are the property of those, who need them.
Understand others’ feelings and sentiments even though they may not be trying to understand you. Love others even though you are not loved by them. Console others even though they might behave with you unsympathetically. This should be done even at the cost of all that you think is dear and near to your heart.
See what is good in others. See what is bad in you. When you find that others are bad, first remember all that is bad in you.
Exaggerate your own minus points and ignore others’. Exaggerate others’ plus points and ignore yours.
Remember your duties. Forget your rights. Remember others’ rights and forget their duties.
Don’t expect others to praise or respect you.
You have no right to feel happy if you have not prayed to God repeatedly for others’ unhappiness to end and have not tried your best to make the unhappy happy to the extent you possibly can do so.
You become rich only when you feel others’ poverty very deeply and are ever anxious to help the poor in all possible ways.
You become great only when you highlight others’ greatness.
The more you give, the more you get. The more you accumulate, the more you lose.
We repeat, you are not you alone. You are incomplete without others. Your motto should be “‘I’ means ‘I’ and others”.
Lead an others-oriented life – a life which accords great importance to others, a life in which others’ interests outweigh the interests relating to ‘I’. Do not and never forget God while you are trying to live such a life. It is God and God alone Whose Grace enables us to lead such a life.
A poet has said that when one touches a blade of grass, his touch affects the whole universe. This means that all beings and things are linked with each other although this linkage may not be visible. Never forget this linkage. Your isolated ‘I’ means nothing. It is your ‘I’ along with others which gives true meaning to your life.
These are very important truths. Ponder these truths. Tell us which of them are, in your opinion, difficult to practise. We will tell you how to practise them. Come forward and tell us what you want to tell.
With love,
Yours affectionately,
The Divine Life Society Headquarters
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