Saving the World by Finding Yourself

“Wanting to reform the world without discovering one's true self is like trying to cover the world with leather to avoid the pain of walking on stones and thorns. It is much simpler to wear shoes.” This is one of my favorite quotes by a renowned Indian sage and self-realized being Ramana Maharshi.

Did you catch the significance of this quote? Read it again and then let’s dive into the essence together and understand what this means.

For as much as in our arrogance we think that we are separate from one another, we have our own little lives with our struggles and gains, this indeed is a false notion. Investigate it for yourself. Can you really live without and outside of everything else that exists? The entire creation, the entire universe is one infinite ecosystem of which you are a minuscule part of. Nevertheless, the universe can’t exist and is not complete without you. We all are a part of one intertwined jigsaw puzzle and our every move affects all other pieces of it.

Not only do we influence the universe by our physical actions, but we do so in a more subtle way from within. According to Dr. David Hawkins, who in his famous book “Power vs Force” devised a map of human consciousness, about 78% of people in the world are negative and only 22% are positive. But what blew me away was that this 22% of positive individuals counterbalances the negativity of the other 78%.

What if it’s true? What if by merely crossing the threshold, taking responsibility for our own lives and living in courage we help save the world? Isn’t this in itself a lifetime achievement worth living for? You can’t imagine the burst of energy, courage and faith you instantly feel when you realize that you, yes YOU can save the world merely by taking the reins of your life into your own hands!

I can tell you’re starting to feel this energy vibrating within you. Excellent! Let’s keep going and see what this taking responsibility actually means. It means stopping to blame anything, anyone and any circumstances. It means resolving to LIVE and not just exist. It means to burn all bridges to the past, forget all that has ever happened and start anew. It’s a resolve that you will accept no negative influence from anyone. It’s a do or die decision absolutely worth making here and now. I promise you, when you make that decision, the powers of the entire universe will jump to our aid and illuminate your new path.

Now that you can feel the sparks within you, let me give you some pointers to build an everlasting flame.

Shut off the valve to negative influences. What do you do when you first wake up? Watch news, read newspapers? I bet you get super excited, inspired and motivated to conquer the world after watching the news, right? We wish! Learning about all the murder stories, economy problems, emergencies, the end of the world...Enough! What are we thinking? How is this helping us or others? How does learning about one more problem with the world help you solve your own problems? Why not replace this time with nurturing your mind, heart and soul?

Open the valve to positive influences. But where to find those, you may ask? Just start looking for them! They are all around you. You’ve heard of YouTube. Search for motivational seminars and audiobooks. They are all there, for free. Invest in self-help books and make reading those a part of your daily routine. Check out the works of Napoleon Hill, Jim Rohn, Tony Robbins, Rhonda Byrne, Stephen Covey, Wayne Dyer, Zig Ziglar, Dr. David Hawkins, just to name a few. Spend more time with positive people. Spend more time in nature. Fill your physical environment with positive messages and mottos. Make it extremely difficult for yourself to feel down.

Refrain from attacking others. We’re usually quick to point out the shortcomings of others. “He should have never....”, or “I can’t believe she did…”, or “If I were him, I would have…”, or “they don’t know how to do their job” and statements of similar nature seem to contain at least half of daily conversations between most people. These are all forms of attacking others. But what you don’t know is that these attacks come right back to you and secretly weaken your self-esteem and integrity. Instead spend more time thanking people, showing appreciation and encouraging them. At the end you will be the receiver of the effects of these messages.

Forgive and let go. You may find this step most difficult. You may tell me “How can I ever forgive this or that?” I hear you. But do it anyway. No matter what it is, let it go. Whatever grudges you have on others are holding you back, big time. It’s time to forgive and let go. Remember, you are starting a new life where guilt, attack and other forms of negative emotions have no place. They are replaced by forgiveness, love and well wishes.

Now go back to the quote in the beginning of this article. By following the steps above you are putting on shoes instead of trying to cover the world with leather. You are becoming a self-empowered person. When you have become a self-empowered person, you have done your biggest part in saving the world. You spread joy, positivity and hope wherever you go, wherever you touch. When you start wearing the shoes, you will find the world isn’t at all unkind, cruel or unfair. Quite the opposite. You will find love in everything. You will find beauty in everything. Instead of a bland, black and white low resolution screen you will start seeing the world through an ultra HD colorful view. It’s on!! You’ve got this!