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Lessons from history on the deadly power of mind – Part 3

“A man who really fights for justice must lead a private, not public life, if he has to survive even for a short time.” – 04 (Greek philosopher of the 4th Century B.C, in ‘The trial and death of Socrates’)

After Ceaser fell, Mark Antony and Octavion, under the senate, ruled Rome and decided to subjugate Egypt. This time again Cleopatra used her magical charms; she had Antony too in the grips of her deadly sensual allurements. They partied and enjoyed lavish opulences. Romans disapproved this union; they knew her power from Ceaser’s history. Yet, Antony, blinded by passion, got weaker.

Soon Ocatvion, led by the Senate’s approval declared war on Cleopatra, while Antony fought for her against his own country. Once upon a time Antony and Octavion led armies together, to crush rebellions. They shared power in Rome but now they became enemies. Antony’s love had taken him away from Rome’s interests.

Seeing her husband might lose the battle, Cleopatra deserted him, and fled back to Egypt. Meanwhile, Antony unable to see her betrayal, and yet captured by her love, abandoned his own distraught army and went to her. She cleverly sent him news of her death, and Antony, in grief killed himself.
When Octavion entered Egypt, Cleopatra tried to entice him too. Driven by a strong aspiration, and having learnt his lessons from the previous two tragedies of Rome, Octavion successfully resisted her spell. This time Cleopatra failed, and realizing she’d lose her power and control of Egypt, killed herself.
Octavion was then proclaimed as Octavion Augustus, the first and most successful of Roman emperors. He learnt from the mistakes of Ceaser and Antony, and expanded the Roman empire. His aspiration helped him rule Rome for forty-one years till his death at the age of seventy-five. He ushered in peace and growth in Rome.

Every man and woman of this world could choose to be Octavion, and confront his or her Cleopatra like mind with care and alertness. Just as Octavion attained lasting success after he defeated Cleopatra’s spells, we too can usher peace and growth in our lives only if we can transcend mind’s traps. And that calls for holding on-like Octavion- to our purpose and aspirations.

Life is short, and time is slipping away. Let’s seek to make the most of it by nursing a higher aspiration; to seek a life far beyond the mind helps us transcend the petty, irritating demands of the mind.

In essence there are three cardinal principles that help us to cope with the mind: Awareness- Acceptance- Aspiration.
It’s imperative we connect to these three simple, yet profound principles of mind management. However as you would soon realize the three principles are interrelated, and it’s not advisable to think of them as stand-alone keys. They not only go hand-in-hand, but also mix to form a beautiful painting on the canvas of your life. For instance, Acceptance includes overcoming guilt and developing self-love. Yet, self-love that is distinguished from false pride happens only with improved self-awareness. Therefore Awareness and Acceptance go together. Another example is the principle of Soul- one would assume that knowing oneself as a spirit soul separate from the body is evolved awareness. Nevertheless you will discover that sustained awareness after all leads to acceptance. And to make a spiritual identity a reality of our existence, we need to live with a higher aspiration; that’s where these three principles merge and help us attain an evolved state of consciousness.

Please know that these keys merge. Integrating the three principles is the real secret, and our daily spiritual practise helps us see the harmony and beauty of these principles in union.

These principles will not only open new frontiers of freedom, but also help you discover you are more than your mind.
Although life’s not an easy journey, and mere techniques can’t resolve deeper issues, the principles discussed in this series do help. And as each one of us has a unique journey, we’ll discover our own personal, sweet relationship with God, universe and fellow beings. In our life’s sojourn, there is always hope of a new innings.

I wish you all the best and invite you to join me in this journey of AWARENESS, ACCEPTANCE and ASPIRATION.

1 Comment

  • Kisho
    Posted January 9, 2018 at 1:36 pm

    Hari bol ! Very good article prabuji.
    rgds
    Kishor Vyas
    Nashik

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