Desire to be strong makes you weak

Whether others pay attention to you or not, pay attention to yourself. It is worthless to pay attention to others; you would be better off if you turned your attention to yourself. You worry about what others think of you. Drop this attitude. If you turn your attention inwards, it will become your source of strength.

Everywhere you struggle to find strength, which is nothing but your own nature. You yourself are the strength you search for; you are a powerhouse of energy.

Once upon a time a beggar went to see Abraham, the emperor. However, this beggar walked like a king. The gatekeeper stopped him and asked, “Where are you going?” to which he replied, “I have come to the pilgrims rest house.” The gatekeeper responded, “This is a palace, not a pilgrims rest house.” 

The beggar insisted, “No, take me to the king, the one who stays in this rest house.” He did not listen to anyone, intent on being taken to the emperor. Noticing his bearing, his manner of walking and the radiance of his face, the king bowed to him, as though compelled. 

The king wondered who this man could be and questioned him, “Why did you say that you have come to a rest house? You have insulted my palace by turning it into a rest house for pilgrims.” He answered, “I had come here before. Back then, another person was sitting here.” “Yes, you do not lie. It is true that my father sat here.” 

The man responded, “I came even before that time. Then too another person sat here.” The king said, “Yes, I agree. What you say is correct. He was my grandfather,” and the beggar replied, “Then is this not a pilgrims’ rest house?

You sit here, believing that all this is yours. Many people have come and gone. Anybody who comes here stays only for some time. Is it not the same as a rest house? Nobody lives here forever. The whole earth is a pilgrims’ resting house, where nobody has stayed forever. For this reason, I called this palace a pilgrims rest house.”

This knowledge struck the king like a lightning bolt. The moment he heard it, he descended from his throne and prostrated before the beggar. “You have opened my eyes! Take this resting house and look after it. I am going and am leaving it to you.” Saying this, King Abraham left the palace.

You search for strength only after desiring it. The desire to be strong makes you weak. The more ambition you have, the weaker you become. When there is fear in the mind, there is no strength. If you have strength, there is no fear.

Desire alone makes you weak. Nothing else does! Desire changes you into a beggar. Come back to yourself, “Svapadam shaktih” - you become the strength!

Sri Sri Sri Ravishankar