Question & Answer: What Youth Ask

Youth have many questions. They are eager to know and understand. Life, after all, has just begun for them. Much of what they encounter leaves them wondering or fuming. At least they feel, there is more to life than what meets the eye, and want to probe further. At times they are articulate—they put forth what nags them, at other times, they just try to untie their unresolved riddles silently. In the following question-answers, an attempt has been made to answer some of their most frequently asked questions. Swami Brahmeshananda is a former editor of the Vedanta Kesari, and has replied these questions at the behest of the Vedanta Kesari. Our young readers, and their well-wishers, will find many of their asked or unasked questions answered here.

Question: What is the purpose of human life?

Answer: According to Hinduism there are four purposes of human life. These are:

1. Dharma (Practice of Righteousness)

2. Artha (Acquisition of wealth)

3. Kama (Fulfillment of desires)

4. Moksha (Liberation or Emancipation)

Most people seek enjoyment and wealth but that must be done through the practice of righteousness. The ultimate purpose of life, however, is Moksha or spiritual freedom.  According to Swami Vivekananda, the goal of life is not enjoyment but knowledge. All other pursuits bring happiness only temporarily.

Question: What is meant by ‘developing a youth’s personality’?

Answer: The word personality is derived from the root persona which means mask. Hence personality would mean the mask which an individual wears on his real self. According to Vedanta, our real nature is Self or atman, which is sat-chit-ananda or of the nature of absolute existence, absolute knowledge and absolute bliss. This real Self or atman is hidden by sheaths or coverings. These coverings are five in number:

1. Annamaya Kosha or Physical Sheath

2. Pranamaya Kosha or Vital Sheath

3. Manomaya Kosha or Mental Sheath

4. Vijnanamaya Kosha or Intellect Sheath

5. Anandmaya Kosha or Blissful Sheath.

Developing a youth’s personality, thus, would mean developing these five sheaths. The Physical Sheath can be developed by nutritious, wholesome diet, exercise, yogasanas and rest. The vital sheath or pranamaya kosha is developed by the practice of pranayama. The Mental and Intellectual Sheaths are developed by study, learning, reasoning and intellectual training.  Personality development essentially involves development and refinement of these two sheaths.

In psychological terms these two sheaths mean faculties of intellect, reasoning and feeling. It includes our emotions, ability to concentrate and willing, which leads to working efficiently. They can be developed by practicing 4 Ds: discrimination, detachment, devotion and discipline. Their development is a lifelong process but is highly rewarding.

 Swami Vivekananda summarizes the ideal personality thus: 

‘You must try to combine in your life immense idealism with immense practicality. You must be prepared to go into deep meditation now, and the next moment you must be ready to go and cultivate these fields (Swamiji said, pointing to the meadows of the Belur Math). You must be prepared to explain the difficult intricacies of the Shastras now, and the next moment to go and sell the produce of the fields in the market. You must be prepared for all menial services, not only here, but elsewhere also. . . .’

A truly developed personality is strong as strength itself and yet possesses a woman’s heart. You must feel for others. You must be firm and yet obedient.

Anandmaya kosha or Blissful Sheath becomes active when the mind is peaceful. Hence purification of the mind through moral disciplines and meditation is needed. More important than all this, however, is to manifest, the real person behind these sheaths, the divine, by spiritual disciplines.

Question: What is the role of environment in moulding the character of a youth?

Answer: Mind of the youth is like a child, extremely susceptible to the situations around. If it is put in a pious environment, it will develop noble habits and thoughts, whereas in evil environment the mind will become evil. Like a cloth which takes the colour of the dye in which it is put; mind also takes the colour of the environment in which it is put. A good environment means having good company, reading healthy literature, and interacting with people of noble character. As a good environment plays a vital role in moulding the character, the youth must be cautious and very selective about their company.

Question: How can the youth serve without hampering their educational pursuits?

Answer: One of the ways is to first complete one’s studies and attain the goals of educational pursuit and after that devote whole-heartedly to service. During this educational period, they must also mentally prepare themselves for the future life of service by equipping themselves with necessary skills to serve others. During their education they should not fall into any financial binding. Or else, after education, service will become their last priority. The other way is, while pursuing education, they can devote weekends, holidays or vacations to serve as volunteers through some recognized service organizations. A third way is to always practise a spirit of service wherever they are—with their classmates, teachers and elders.

Question: How can a youth channel his energies?

Answer: Let us first understand how we dissipate our energies.

1. By being idle. A lot of psychic energy is wasted by simply sitting, day dreaming or gossiping.

2. By trying to do many tasks at a time and not being able to do any one efficiently.

3. Working haphazardly.

The youth can channel their energies by taking up one task at a time, doing it efficiently and pursuing it till the end. They should practice brahmacharya to conserve energy. Meditation also channels the energy, but one must know how to meditate. In the words of Swamiji:

‘Take up one idea. Make that one idea your life — think of it, dream of it, live on that idea. Let the brain, muscles, nerves, every part of your body, be full of that idea, and just leave every other idea alone. This is the way to success, and this is the way great spiritual giants are produced.’

Question: How should the youth act when the elders go wrong?

Answer: Right and wrong are relative concepts. What may seem right, according to one frame of reference (time-place-relationship), might turn out to be completely wrong according to another.

Before coming to any conclusion that elders have gone wrong the youth must carefully and impartially assess all the aspects of the matter and be impartial in their conclusions. They must emulate only the right conduct of the elders and not the wrong ones, as has been warned in Taittiriya Upanishad (I.xi.2-4). The wrong conduct of the elders must not be used as a license or excuse for indulging in wrong ways.

If necessary the youth may point out the wrong conduct of the elders politely and tactfully, as Nachiketa did to his father as mentioned in the story of Kathopanishad. He did not, for example, openly tell his father that his charity was not proper, but asked him politely to whom he had given Nachiketa to.

Finally the youth must remember that they too will become elders some day and the youth of that generation could also be critical of their conduct. Hence, it is better to struggle to be ideal elders than to find fault with elders.

Question: Youth are drawn to the world of senses naturally. Why should they fight it and how?

Answer: Sense-attractions are naturally very strong and forcefully pull the mind away from any task one might be engaged in. Sense attractions are the greatest hindrance to one-pointedness and destroy concentration. As concentration is most essential for success, the youth must learn to control senses. Once the mind is convinced that sense enjoyment is harmful, it will not go towards them. If, for example, one knows that a dish of sweets contains poison, one will never eat even though it might be most good looking and tasty. Similarly the most natural and right technique of sense control is to thoroughly convince the mind that sense-pleasure are harmful. The youth should remain at a safe distance from the world of strong sense-attractions because, senses can pull away even the most learned person. They should reflect deeply over the impermanence of sense pleasures. Then only such cravings can be checked. If the sense attraction is very strong, an attempt can be made to sublimate them by associating them with God. This is the rationale behind offering sweets to God and partaking them as prasad, and other similar practices.

Question: How to fight depression in youth?

Answer: Depression could be due to various causes. We may have been dis-
appointed by something or we may feel that we are not competent to do a given task and lack the ability to do it. Depression can also come from the fear of future suffering or the inability to bear an unpleasant situation.

In most cases, depression is due to our pessimistic reaction to real or imaginary situations. Very often we underestimate our potential. Hence the solution is to develop a positive attitude towards life and have faith in one’s potential. Failures and sufferings are inevitable in life. They must not be magnified. One should focus on the good things one has in life rather than complaining about  what one lacks.

Swami Vivekananda says in his beautiful poem ‘An interesting Correspondence’ (Complete Works, 8:163)

Let eyes grow dim and heart grow faint,

And friendship fail and love betray,

Let Fate its hundred horrors send,

And clotted darkness block the way.

All nature wear one angry frown,

To crush you out – still know, my soul,

You are Divine. March on and on,

Nor right nor left but to the goal.”

Reading passages from Swami Vivekananda’s Complete Works everyday is a sure way to overcome depression.    

Question: How can the youth develop faith in themselves?

Answer: There is no greater champion of inculcating faith in oneself than Swami Vivekananda. He in fact declared preaching how to develop self-confidence as the singular mission of his life.

He said:

v He is an atheist who does not believe in himself.

v History of the world is history of a few men who had faith in themselves.

v Faith, Faith, Faith in ourselves, faith, faith in God – this is the secret of  greatness.

One should always think positively about oneself—that is the sure way to develop self-confidence. Reading the lives of great men is also very helpful. One very easy and definite method is to keep a booklet of Swamiji in your pocket and read it as often as you can. Some available booklets are Thus Spake Vivekananda, Thoughts of Power, Flashes from Vivekananda, Voice of Vivekananda, Message of Vivekananda (available at almost all the centres of the Ramakrishna Math and Mission).

Question: How to avoid misunderstandings and build lasting relationships?

Answer: Misunderstandings are inevitable in human relationships. But one can overcome them by trying to understand the other person’s view. One must also learn to bear with the imperfections in others. We cannot change others, but we can change ourselves. Conversely, no one can please all. Hence, it is better to develop lasting relationship with God, and since God resides in every human being, one will be able to have harmonious relationship with all. Mature persons alone can have lasting relationship. Maturity means development of patience, forgiveness and a broad perspective of life. Mutual respect fosters good relationships.

Question: What is the place of discipline in a youth’s day-to-day life?

Answer: Discipline is needed since everything has certain inherent rule for its use and benefit. Even such daily activities like taking regular bath, brushing teeth, and avoiding consumption  of harmful substances and following rules of hygiene is essential not only for physical health but mental health too. Success is any endeavour, material or spiritual, is impossible without a disciplined life.

Question: How can a youth stand against the power of greed and lust?

Answer: Lust and greed are great tempta-
tions. They can lead to ruin. One must deeply contemplate upon their evil consequences and thus get over them.

Lust is essentially a misdirected search for joy and oneness. One should get convinced of one’s joyful divine nature and redirect lust into a higher channel. Even those who lead a married life must follow certain restrain. Greed is born of misconception that having more makes one happy. The truth is that only simplicity brings happiness. If we avoid looking at what others have, many of our unwanted greedy pursuits will come to an end.

Question: How to face the challenge of ‘ragging’ or ‘bullying’ in school and colleges?

Answer: Ragging is legally banned in all colleges. However, we can not deny that it is still present in different forms. When a senior compels a junior to do something against the junior’s wish it is called ragging. According to Swami Vivekananda, the evil in this world is not due to the activity of the bad but due to the inactivity of the good. One should be bold and couragious to practise one’s noble intentions.

Question: What is the correct attitude towards the mass media, which is at best a mixed blessing?

Answer: Present day mass media is more a curse than a mixed blessing. It is directly and indirectly encouraging a hedonistic way of life. The T.V. programmes are replete with commer-
cial breaks which are extremely harmful for developing concentration of mind. Those who view T.V. for long hours cannot concentrate on any subject for long. Youth must avoid exposure to mass media till they have learnt to discriminate what is helpful or harmful. They should learn to choose healthier forms of recreation like reading good story books, listening to bhajans or poems, gardening, or developing some other hobby.

Question: Is it possible to be spiritual in the present day society?

Answer: Yes, certainly. The message of Sri Ramakrishna is precisely for making spirituality practical in the present day society.

According to Srimat Bhagvatam (I.18.7.8), the present age called Iron Age (kali yuga) has a great advantage that is:

Whatever good you do, it fructifies immediately, but not so the evil deeds; and besides in Kali’s age sin accrues only to sinful deeds and not sinful thoughts.

Kali is like one who is cowardly before the brave, but brave before the cowardly.

He holds no fear for the good and self– controlled, but like a wolf he is always vigilant and alert to pounce upon those who are thoughtless and unobservant.

Youth is the ideal time for self-transformation. The society should provide all opportunities for the youth to develop their personality and become responsible members of the society.