January 31 2021 Sunday Morning Youth Session: Emotional Growth

In this Sunday Morning Youth session, Pujya Swamiji unfolds the importance of emotional growth, one of the integral elements for self-management.  Pujya Swamiji points out that the purpose of human life is to grow, and different people have different kind of objectives in life.  It is desirable to have some objective in life, something that inspires and motivates to do better.  It is emphasized that everyone has a unique place in the scheme of things and hence each one is important.  So rather than comparing with others and building on negative tendencies, we should compete with ourselves as to how to improve.  Learning and getting inspired by others is alright and desirable, but judging ourselves based on others is not right.

Pujya Swamiji further discusses the two types of growth, the growth of personality in relation to worldly achievements, name and fame etc., and the growth of emotional personality.  It is pointed out that the purpose behind everything is to be happy.  People want name, fame etc., to become happy.  They think they will become happy as a result of the material gain.  So behind all desires is only one desire, the desire to be happy.  As Yājñavalkya says to Maitreyi, ‘In our life nothing is dear for its own sake, anything that is dear to me is because the self is dear to me’.   Here Pujya Swamiji unfolds how emotional growth is the means to be happy by cultivating a mind conducive to enjoy the happiness.  Happiness means the ability to enjoy myself.  The extent I enjoy myself, to that extent my dependence to other things automatically goes away.  Thus creating a mind which progressively enjoys itself is the right way to enjoy the happiness.

The youth and the seekers are encouraged to refer to the ‘Management Wisdom from Bhagavad Gītā’ by Pujya Swami Viditatmanandaji.  This reading will provide further clarity of understanding and interpreting the issues we face in our daily life, and will complement this Satsanga.