Discovering inner strength

Sanjaya, the youngest son of King Dhritarashtra had great inner vision, and he was an expert in seeing things happening far away. So, the king took his help to see what was happening in the Mahabharata war. That's the very first lesson of the Bhagavad Gita: even if you don’t have the ability, take the help of those who do have the ability. You can’t do everything by yourself. Whatever you can't do, there are those who can do it. Take their help, and do it. See, they’re all a part of you. 

Now comes Duryodhana, the eldest son of Dhritarashtra. When he saw the strength of the Pandavas, with whom he was going to fight, he, straightaway, went to his master complaining about it. The weakness of a person is that he/she doesn’t recognize his/her strength. When you look at the other person, and find them much stronger than you, you will feel yourself becoming weaker. If your sight is stuck on others, and never on your own self, you’re bound to be weak.

Similarly, Duryodhana didn’t see his own massive army with him. His eyes were on the other. When your eyes are on others, you can’t but complain. That’s exactly what he did - “See what you’ve done, look at them. They have so much talent, power and people; there is nobody with me." He started his off-tune music; his music goes that way - accusation. So, by the hour, he was feeling frustrated, angry, tense, and, finally, accusing the very teachers, who taught him. This is the height of ignorance. Strength comes from gratefulness - from recognizing one’s strength. 

This is a transcript from a talk by Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar. You can watch more talks on The Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar youtube channel. Subscribe today!