Question & Answer sessions with HH Sri Datta Vijayananda Teertha Swamiji – 2015
Good – Bad
Question :
Good people always suffer. They are taken for granted, exploited, and insulted. They are denied the respect they deserve. Please explain how good people should deal with this.
Answer :
I read a book, ‘The Difficulty in Being Good’. It is always difficult to be good. It is easy to be bad in this world. We see that in the history books. But who is victorious in the end? That we must observe.
The story was about Kauravas and Pandavas. Initially, the Kauravas were comfortable while the Pandavas suffered. But in the end, Kauravas experienced great misery. Pandavas were happy. Swargarohana Parva states this. Pandavas walked straight into heaven.
A good person will certainly face difficulties. But when you are good, you are close to Sadguru. Because of that, you will experience comforts in this life. Whatever happiness you deserve, whatever is important, will certainly come to you, even if not right today. If you are good now, your after-life also will be good. It is important to remain good, even if your virtue is taken for granted. The world is such that the submissive will be exploited. But how long will others knock you on the head? If you remain tolerant, only till their knuckles hurt. But to possess such endurance in Kali Yuga is rare.
Lord Hanuman said that it is stupidity to allow oneself to be cheated. A gullible person gets deceived by everyone. One may be mild as a cow but need not be submissive. To protect yourself from the dishonest, you too must pretend. Good does not mean ignorant. Do not blame the wicked for your lack of judgment.
Being good means doing things which please Sadguru, studying scriptures as instructed by him, and leading a happy and contented life. If difficulties occur, prepare to face them. If you go to Manasarovar, knowing that oxygen will be less, you go prepared. Conditions there will not be like in Hyderabad. Oxygen is sparse at higher elevations. Goodness brings problems because you are journeying higher. But because Sadguru is with you, it does not matter. Therefore, determine to be good. The world will support you. The wicked will eventually change in your favor.
Do not be excessive in showing hospitality, allowing the guest to occupy your home with family and relatives and evict you from your own home. That happened with us in India, Swamiji says. We have to behave in accordance with times, and as per our capacity and potential. Just because King Sibi gave his own
flesh to feed a bird, can we do the same? We are not that exalted. We have to watch our conduct and be discreet.
You keep smiling. Then the one who is envious will begin to weep and will die from distress. In fact, you should look doubly jubilant. That is the right treatment for him. That will make him change. For such people, what is important is not their own happiness. They wish others to be unhappy. Such people exist in this world. Why should you allow them to make you miserable? This vehicle must continue its journey without applying brakes for anyone.
Jai Datta.