Energy, Action and Result

By Srinivas Rao Indumukhi

Life is Action?

Our life is made up of a series of actions that we undertake, with expectations of achieving certain results— which could be tangible or intangible.?

We choose the action that we undertake, in anticipation of a feeling that we will feel, with the end result. This could be a feeling that we wish to feel or one that we wish to avoid.?

For instance— we choose to eat foods that give us a good taste, that will cause a feeling of excitement or satiation. And we choose to avoid other foods, that will cause distaste or repulsion.?

Therefore, our actions are mostly to get something we want or to avoid something we do not want. The beneficiary is mostly ourselves, our families and near ones or our organisations or social structure.?

We want to stand apart from others and feel big in many ways. There is an urge generated by instincts and impulses for addition, multiplication of needs, and subtraction of undesirable.? Such minds seem to be worrying about the past and anxious about the future.?

What fuels our Actions??

For most of us, since likes and dislikes are associated with almost everything we sense in this world, using our sense organs as input devices, we tend to repeat the actions that produce what we like or avoid what we don’t like.?

This need to keep continuously working on these two - likes and dislikes - with attention and focus on “me or mine” is what we can term as the cause of our desires – the energy-generating force that propels action.??

The deeper the desire, the stronger the force used.?

It is common for us to see that one puts in more effort to come first in a competition, or winning a race, or lose weight faster.?

To fulfil desires we may even set some goals, which become milestones or measures to signify level based on comparison with others— that by so and so time should achieve something, get a particular recognition, reach some level of income, attain some level in hierarchy or power or position, etc. We often focus on results that we want to achieve and push us towards them.?

As long as the wind is in the direction helping our journey, we are on top of the world.?

But the moment the wind is not favourable, it makes the process of achieving tiring, strenuous, and anxious.?

We complain about any obstacles and challenges, feel stressed, and often feel tension and anxiety about reaching the goal; and even if we reach it, the process seems exhausting.?

Sometimes the goals themselves are abandoned as “circumstances did not permit”, or “I had no choice”.?

Sometimes we give up on goals without even attempting them, deeming the goal too impracticable under the current circumstance and therefore “unachievable.”

Initiatives: The Art Of Achieving Results

On the other hand, we have seen people, who have a long-term and broader vision, whom we call visionaries.?

Such people seem to work on initiatives that make them accomplish what seems impossible and extraordinary, that make a big difference to not only their own selves but to many others— sometimes impacting large populations of the world.?

They also do it with ease and grace and do not seem to complain, whatever the challenges they face.?

There seems to be some insatiable excitement and energy generated from what they are doing.?

Their work becomes a mission.?

There is no tiredness, instead, there is sheer joy and love in what they do, which replenishes their energy in abundance to keep going and keep growing.?

Their goals are not and have no end or destination, rather are an ongoing process and become the purpose of their being.?

They create an enterprise for a purpose, which runs beyond them.?

Such persons, seem to work in three areas.?

1) They are great observers who learn with great curiosity. ?They understand the systems that help create a desired result, thus they are able to plan and make choices that are complementary to their mission.??

2) They continuously expand their capacity to perform with excellence.?

3) They address issues that serve a large section of people including themselves, and can foresee much ahead of time.?

Thus, they learn from the past and work in the present, with full focus on excellence to create the future they want.??

“THEY DON’T SEE A DIFFERENT WORLD, THEY SEE THE WORLD DIFFERENTLY.”

We have seen persons like Mahatma Gandhi, Nelson Mandela, Mother Teresa, Dr A P J Abdul Kalam, Steve Jobs, Bill Gates, Warren Buffet, Sadhguru, and many more who have made a great difference to the lives of people. If we see the list of Padma awardees, we come to know of the wonderful stories of their contribution to society. It is not big or small, but the ideal for which they stood at all times that made a difference to them and others.

According to the Bhagavad Gita:

Verse 49 of Chapter 2 (Samkhya Yoga) of the Bhagavad Gita, beautifully captures this essence:

dūre?a hy-avara? karma buddhi-yogād dhana?jaya buddhau ?hara?am anvichchha k?ipa?ā? phala-hetava?

To translate: When people are prompted by instincts and impulses that are ego-centred and selfish in nature, then their actions are lower. These lower actions create unnecessary sweat, toiling, labor, exhaustion, and suffering in this world. One undergoes this while complaining of the tensions, stress, and strain in their life.?

This is not real work.?

Real work is noble, it is inspired by a high ideal, striving and serving continuously with enthusiasm and joy, which creates energy replenishment that never tires a person. When one pursues results or fruits for selfish reasons, they are like a miser, who has the ability and capacity to live with inspired enthusiasm and yet does not use it as he is not able to give up the attachment to his own ego-centric needs.

I am so grateful to Ceekr for helping me in my journey of inner work and presenting a simple model of Choice Making Mind in their Mind Mastery Courses using 5000-year-old Vedic and Yogic Science with modern AI tools and science to enable a transformative experience. I have learned how one can use the mantra of “Curiosity, Excellence and Service” to create a meaningful life as stated in the shloka above.?