I would like to ask this question; it is a question for all of us here. Why is life so difficult sometimes? What is the real difficulty?
Let me tell you. There are no difficulties. The difficulty is only in our mind.
Many of us fight against the natural flow of life either consciously, or, without knowing that we are struggling, subconsciously. But if we do this, our energy, our prana, is eaten away by the fight. Others amongst us manage challenges easily because we may have already experienced enough difficulties in our lives to have come to an understanding that resistance brings suffering. Each one of us has to eliminate the negativity in the mind, because otherwise it stays with us and we lead an unfulfilled life. When the opportunity arises to rid ourselves of this negativity, we have the choice either to surrender and change or to resist and remain the same. To change by surrendering is not easy; it is like being burnt. Remember though, that once the moment of pain has passed, it is gone forever and we emerge stronger. For some of us, it may take a lifetime to get through just one painful moment.
When you return home after spending time at the Ashram, you will see the contrast between looking at life from a spiritual point of view and the way you previously looked at life. Spiritual training can be very intense and very concentrated. Once you are home, you will have a tremendous amount of energy for a week or so. But watch out. You can easily slip back to your old ways. The old ways of the mind will be dormant, but still there. The mind reasserts itself despite the training. Without support, the ego rises up and finds excuses not to continue the new practices. The mind goes back to being scattered. Initially you feel good because during your stay in the Ashram the mind was squeezed—it was made to focus, focus, focus. At home you suddenly let go. Ahhh, it feels so good to relax!! Why should I get up at 4:30a.m? Maybe I’ll start at 5:30 a.m, then at 6, then 7, then 8. Self-justification creeps in. The mind will gradually question, little by little, your new-found spiritual practices. If you let the mind have its way, you will have to start the whole process of training again.
In spiritual life, we slowly become aware of what we have to go through to expand our consciousness. Spiritual training brings us closer and closer to the true reality of life. Each of us has his own karma. Each has to follow his duty in life but by following the teachings of Swami Sivananda we develop a different outlook with different values; we have a broader understanding of the process of life than we did previously.
Remember, what we call love, infinity, eternity, immortality, God—call it what you wish—is in front of us all the time, even at this very moment. We cannot see God because we are not focused. We are scattered. God does not hide Himself under the carpet or behind the furniture. He is infinite and He is everywhere. But the fact that we cannot see Him, whether we call Him or not, whether we acknowledge Him or not, is because our minds are not focused.
In our training, we may not feel the presence of God, we may not experience Him, but we begin to understand the process of doing so. We begin to see how much we can do, but also how much has to be done. We recognize that we are on the right path, that we have a better knowledge about ourselves, that we can manage better our own physical, mental and spiritual energy. We are better equipped for life. Eventually, if we continue for long enough and with enough determination and faith, we become saintly.
In the end, it makes no difference whether spiritual life is inside an ashram or outside.
There is no preference given by God to a sannyasin, to a yogi or to people outside. All are the same before God. We all have the same soul. The sinner and the saint are the same before God. Everyone has the same eternal, divine soul. And yet we live with veils that prevent us from seeing the true reality and we require a great deal of strength and courage to remove these veils… one step more, one step more, one step more. We remove these veils one by one.
The power of God is there, but we must become aware of it.