The secret to inner strength is natural enthusiasm

When we remain enthusiastic, even in the face of difficulty, it is a sign of our inner strength. When we listen to the news and look at situations around us, our enthusiasm can drop. But if we can pull the mind away from outer situations and focus instead on what is in front of us, we preserve our enthusiasm. Enthusiasm is evidence of our ability to focus the mind. It is also evidence of a clean mind, an unadulterated mind. When our thoughts are unadulterated, they have power and manifest as enthusiasm. In this state, we do not allow weak thoughts to emerge.

Enthusiasm is also connected with courage. We may feel something is impossible. Weak thoughts of self-doubt come from adulteration in the mind. They come from memories of past experiences, when I was not able to achieve something or when something did not work out the way I had hoped. This memory can cause me to lose courage in the present. A secret to maintaining a steady flow of enthusiasm is to have a kind of mastery of the mind that keeps it pure and powerful.

All of us have a part to play. The part we play dictates what we have to do, and what we have to give. We adopt different roles. You may, for example, be given a role of a “hero,” someone whose decisions affect many. You may like that role but be unsure how to play it. As you prepare yourself to play it, that “hero role” becomes your part. There is a subtle difference. A role has been given to us, but we play our part according to our particular specialties. Our ability to play our part with natural energy and enthusiasm requires preparation and very subtle, quiet contemplation in the mind.

Whatever the assignment you receive, if you stay connected with your internal self, you will feel natural and satisfied. Otherwise, you would be playing a part externally, but internally you would feel restless and uncomfortable. Know yourself and acquire the qualities and powers you need to play your part in such a way that you feel happy and satisfied. Again, this goes back to the condition of the mind. When our thoughts are adulterated, they confuse our thinking. We mix subtle things, so there is no power. Adulterated thinking makes the mind weak. An unadulterated mind is a quiet, peaceful, clear mind. Experiment with this internally and experience the clarity and peace of an unadulterated mind.

A key to an unadulterated mind and to maintaining internal enthusiasm is a quality we do not think about too often— purity. When there is purity, there are no traces of anger, anxiety, or weaknesses, even subtly. Complete purity is the state of someone who is free from influences of any kind and has no desires of any kind. Purity brings inner power, peace, love, happiness, and prosperity; purity brings everything. When we become free from the past, free from all influences and desires, we are truly free. We experience the lightness of peace and contentment. We are naturally enthusiastic, and our every thought brings benefit to those around us. The more we make our minds pure, the more our minds are pulled towards the mind of God, the Supreme Being.

B.K. Mohini is Additional Administrative Head of the Brahma Kumaris