Possibilities expand when we begin where we are instead of where we should be

Suppose we take a wrong turn and end up somewhere other than our destination. If we keep resenting, “Why am I here instead of where I should have been?” we end up paralyzing ourselves. As we waste the time that could have been used to get to our destination, our possibilities for getting there shrink.

Similarly, when we find ourselves in an unpalatable situation, our mind goes into an auto-repeat mode, asking resentfully, “Why did this happen?” or “Why did they act like that?” or even, “Why did I do like that?” Such resentment by consuming our time and mental energy shrinks our possibilities for correcting the situation.

Central to ending resentment is tolerance, which essentially means the willingness to accept the reality as it is. The Bhagavad-gita (02.14) commends such tolerance and places its call for tolerance immediately after delineating our spiritual identity (02.13). This context indicates that spiritual knowledge can and should foster material tolerance. How?

By informing us of a higher reality that is unchanging and is unfailingly shelter giving. By prayer and meditation, we can elevate our consciousness to this higher spiritual reality, experiencing the unchangeability of our spiritual essence and our connectedness with the supreme spiritual reality, Krishna. By this inner solace, we realize that important things in our life are still all right and that whatever has gone wrong is not catastrophic.

By such realization, we can break free from the mind’s “should be” narrative and channel our mental energy for exploring pathways to go from where we are to where we need to go. Whereas resentment keeps our thoughts locked, re-running on the same disempowering track of how things should have been, spirituality opens new empowering tracks for those thoughts, thus expanding our possibilities and eventually changing our realities.