The Art of Relaxed Efforts

In September 2022, DAAJI released his latest bestseller, The Wisdom Bridge, and throughout 2023 we are sharing highlights from the various chapters to give you a taste of the wisdom the book offers. This month the excerpt is from chapter 10 on Principle 5: Early Childhood Is the Foundation.

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Relaxed Efforts Go a Long Way

Saint Kabir wrote a couplet that goes like this:

Dheere dheere re mana,

dheere sub kucch hoye

Mali seenche so ghara,

ritu aaye phal hoye

Slow down, dear mind, slow

down. Everything happens in its own time.

The gardener may pour a hundred buckets of water,

but only when the season is right will the trees yield fruit.

In a few words, Saint Kabir shares the wisdom behind doing things at the right time and waiting patiently for the results.

Parents know about doing things at the right time. And even if they don't, they can read about it and learn. But waiting for the results is an attitude one needs to develop. Especially in today's world of FOMO (fear of missing out) and instant gratification, waiting can be a tough exercise.

What do we mean by waiting? In its real sense, waiting means allowing a process that has begun to complete without interfering. Just as we sow a seed and then wait. We put the potatoes on to boil, and then we wait. We teach children good habits, and then we wait. We offer a prayer, and then we wait. If you analyze it, life is nothing but waiting interspersed with moments or bursts of activity. Waiting takes up a large part of our life and not activity. Waiting comes from the faith that actions done well will yield the right results. It is waiting that is the art.