Magnificent, stately, and splendid are some of the adjectives used to define the word ‘royal’. What is it that makes someone royal? Does aristocratic lineage, a title, abundant wealth, or polished manners make us royal? Someone may have one of these attributes and not the others; or they may have all these and still be unworthy of being called royal.
The one quality that makes a person genuinely royal is purity – the absence of any vice or defect. And the most notable sign of royalty is truth. Truth is not made up or mixed up with anything, whether in our words, behaviour or relationships. This is also called honesty. Being royal means to be honest in our attitude, vision, speech and behaviour. Someone who is royal will not behave in one way but have something else in their intentions. It is this genuineness that touches others and inspires respect in them.
If someone is good at making up stories to present a lie to be the truth and prove the truth to be false; they are one thing inside and something else outside, would they be considered royal? Someone with such a character wins neither trust nor respect. If there is any artifice or pretence, it indicates a lack of purity.
Another sign of truth and purity is happiness. Where there is truth, there is nothing to hide, so there is no fear, worry or heaviness that comes from living a lie. True souls are naturally light and happy, and for this reason they are also loved by all.
One more sign of royalty is the absence of neediness – not wanting or seeking anything, be it respect, love, or anything material. A royal soul is contented, so they do not feel that they lack anything. They may not be materially well off, but because they are contented, they remain happy. No matter how wealthy someone is, if their mind is not full, they will be discontented, restless because of wanting something or the other. “It should happen this way…”, “This is what should be done…”, “This has to change…” – such are the words of that person. In other words, they are always asking for something. The desire for praise, respect, love, to want to be consulted; all these show neediness. A royal soul does not have even a trace of it.
Finally, all the good qualities of a royal soul do not make them arrogant or judgmental. They are not harsh with those who have any kind of weakness, but discern the other person’s shortcomings and inspire them, with genuine good wishes, so that they can become free from them.
B.K. Usha is a Rajyoga teacher at the Brahma Kumaris headquarters in Abu Road, Rajasthan.