Page 16 - The Indian EYE 082523

SPECIAL FEATURE AUGUST 25, 2023 | The Indian Eye 16

TOWARDS BETTER LIVING

THE SPARE TIRE

magine it’s early morning and
you’re driving to work or school
Iand suddenly you hear a POP!
You pull over and realize — oh man,
I have a flat tire. Are you shocked?
stressed? You may feel these emo-
tions, but it’s short-lived. In this des-
perate moment, you remember the
spare tire — otherwise, it’s a distant
thought.
Similarly, we’ve turned God into
the spare tire of our lives. We only
think of God when we need him.
When life is good, we forget the
one who has given us everything. We
build a sense of “I”-ness and “my”-
ness, our egos build up, and we are the
cause of everything good in our lives.
Blinded by the veil of prosperity, we be-
come ungrateful and fail to recognize
who the true catalyst of our success is.
In the Ramayana, there is a sto-
ry of Sugriva, who, in exchange for
killing his tyrant brother, King Vali, of mind. Remembering God gives
promised Bhagwan Ram that he us courage and a backbone to fight
would do everything in his power to the negativity that often fills our life.
help find Sita. When he became King, Not once did Prahlad feel a sense
he became attached to the indulgenc- of insecurity or anxiety, because God
es of a kingdom and forgot his prom- was at the forefront of his thoughts.
ise. Meanwhile, Bhagwan Ram and His devotion never wavered, and he
Lakshman waited in a cave for months remained steadfast. Not once did
during the monsoon season for Su- Prahlad think, “Maybe my father is
griva to keep his end of the bargain. right! Maybe I am the son of God. I
Sugriva forgot the person who should enjoy these luxuries and rich-
gave him everything — he forgot es.” On the contrary, he had full con-
God. Only when Lakshman went to viction of who God really was. He un-
Kishkinda and reminded Sugriva that derstood the real reason why he was
Bhagwan Ram was the one who had being saved all those times. And his
given him the throne, did he come to aim was to please God.
his senses? After repenting, Sugriva Coming back to the analogy of
completely devoted himself to Bhag- a spare tire, when you get a flat tire,
wan Ram. his last bit of hope and energy, Gajen- or face death. Despite this ultimatum, you’ll remember your spare tire out
When life is going well, and we dra raised a lotus flower high in the Prahlad remained steadfast and con- of desperation. At an opportune mo-
have a sense of contentment. Some- air as an offering to Vishnu Bhagwan. tinued praying to Vishnu Bhagwan. ment, you’ll get your tire patched or
times we need a nail in the road to re- Hearing Gajendra’s prayer, Vishnu Hiranyakashipu realized Prahlad resort to a brand-new tire and put the
mind us of God. A nail is small, yet it Bhagwan rushed to the scene and wouldn’t budge and decided to kill spare tire back in its dusty compart-
can have a tremendous impact. helped Gajendra escape. him. Hiranyakashipu tried many ment. We should not think of God
In another anecdote, the ele- God is always there. It begs to methods to kill Prahlad: poison- in this same way, but rather, should
phant Gajendra decided he wanted to question why Gajendra remembered ing him, having him trampled by remember that he’s always there for
pick lotus flowers to offer to Vishnu God as his last resort? elephants, drowning him, and burn- us. When life is running smoothly or
Bhagwan. He went to a nearby lake We can see the benefits of always ing him alive, but each time Prahlad when there is some turbulence. We
and started picking flowers when remembering God in Prahlad’s story. prayed to Vishnu Bhagwan, and should always remember the comfort,
suddenly, a crocodile attacked him He was the son of the cruel ruler, Hi- Vishnu Bhagwan protected him. security, and sense of hope that God
and caught him by the leg. Gajendra ranyakashipu. Prahlad was devoted to Eventually, Vishnu Bhagwan himself provides. The ‘spare’ tire is always
immediately went into fight or flight Vishnu Bhagwan; however, his father manifested in the form of Narasimha there to spare us!
mode. He tried to free himself but believed himself to be a god. Prahlad Bhagwan and killed Hiranyakashipu, Darshan Patel, Charlotte,
to no avail. The members of his herd constantly prayed to Vishnu Bhagwan, saving Prahlad. North Carolina
came to help, but it was all in vain. which angered Hiranyakashipu. Hira- Why is it important to think of Senior Data Analyst
Despite realizing that death was nyakashipu gave him an ultimatum: ei- God regularly? It is because remem- Volunteer,
inevitable, he did not give up. With ther stop praying to Vishnu Bhagwan bering God gives us balance and peace BAPS Swaminarayan Sanstha

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