From a lecture by Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, July 1992, Germany
“There are only two possibilities: either you whine in your mind, or you are grateful. There is no middle ground between the two. We have to choose either one or the other. When we are grateful, no complaints are possible. When we complain, we cannot be grateful. This is obvious. The mind complains about what it has and also about what it does not have. Many single people complain that they have not found a suitable partner. And many married people complain that they were better off alone. A working person complains that the work is too heavy, too stressful. The unemployed person complains that he has no job. Do you see? If it is sunny, the mind says: ‘Oh, it’s too hot.’ If it is rainy, the mind whines: ‘Oh dear, it’s pouring.’ A complaining mind can find fault in any situation.
When God created the human being, the human came to Him over every little thing, asking for approval and complaining about everything. The human would pray for God to come. If God came, he would say: ‘Don’t come now, come later. You came too early.’ If God did not come, he would complain: ‘I called You so many times, and You came so late.’ God began to get tired of these whims. He wanted to go away and hide somewhere, but that was difficult. He realized that the human would find Him even on the moon. Then God met a sage. The sage whispered in His ear: ‘Hide in the human heart. That is the place where the human never looks.’ From that day on, God hides in the human heart. Anyone who looks there no longer complains. All complaints disappear. One person here and there among millions reaches their heart and finds God there. And when a person finds God in their own heart, all complaints fall silent.”
Question: How can we reach this silence in the heart?
Answer: Be grateful.
If this is difficult for you, then do some practices: meditation, breathing techniques, exercises – they will help calm your mind. When you complain, when you are unhappy about something, you cannot feel gratitude, can you? But you can become aware of the whole situation, and this is the first step. When the mind complains, it does not even notice it. The first step is to become aware of it. Then become aware of what you have, and your heart will fill with gratitude. Then all complaints will disappear. You will become very simple, very natural, truly loving and truly free.”
Contentment and discontent are opposites and, in this sense, both are necessary in order to encompass the Whole. If we are too content, we stop developing. Why make any effort if what we have is sufficient? On the other hand, if we are constantly discontent, the joy of life disappears and life becomes filled with stress and tension. It seems that the third that unites them is gratitude. In order to reach it, the only thing we need is to be grateful not only for what we have, but also for what we do not have. When we manage to see that it is precisely because of what we do not have that we can develop, gratitude for the “not-having” arises as well.
If the thought of this Indian sage reaches you now through the “games of synchronicity,” check whether it might be time for gratitude — not only for what you have, but also for what you do not have.
