Why do few achieve, when others fail?
Everyone works hard, what then differentiates between ones who succeed & ones who succumb?
Why hyper-activity can be harmful?
What stands between You & Your Goal?
Answer Lies in Iccha Shakti or Willpower.
What is this Willpower then?
1. The word closest to Iccha in English is Desire, however, Iccha Shakti can be translated as Willpower in the English language.
2. How to raise one’s Willpower (Strength of one’s Will). It has two steps. Increase in Kriya Shakti and enhancement in Gyan Shakti.
Kriya Shakti — Power to act or physical strength to action. Kriya Shakti is made of two words — Kriya which means action, Shakti which means strength.
Gyan Shakti — Gyan Shakti means the power or the ability to know and gain or attain knowledge.
Iccha Shakti, Gyan Shakti, and Kriya Shakti are interrelated as well as essential to execute any task. For example is one wishes to build a reservoir in arid or parched land, located in remote interiors with limited resources. To complete the initiative, one needs to have the knowledge, know-how (Gyan Shakti) how to proceed, then one needs to take appropriate action (use of Kriya Shakti), and finally Willpower (Iccha Shakti) to continue and complete against all odds.
3. Kriya Shakti can be further divided into 2 parts — Kaushal Karma (expertise to perform deeds & duty) and Kushal Karma (executing well in all actions).
Good engagement with Work with good expertise. Doing the right things with the right skillset. (It also involves avoiding wrong actions with wrong intent as well).
4. Gyan Shakti can also be further divided into 2 parts — First Learning good things in the right manner with the right perspective and second avoiding wrong ideas, ideals and ideology.
5. There are four steps to achieve any goal or reach the milestone -
a. Sankalp — Destination, Goal, Conscious desire to reach a place.
b. Yojana and Pariyojana — Plan and detailed, carefully crafted plan.
c. Karma — Execution of the Plan with the right mindset and right behavior with righteous ethics. (Highest degree of Iccha Shakti is needed at this juncture.)
d. Phalam — Outcome — Sometimes desired, sometimes undesirable. If one experiences an undesired outcome, one learns and improvises; however if desired results come, one moves to the next journey.
6. To achieve anything in life one needs Good Mental and Physical Health — Buddhi Swasthya and Sharirik Swasthya.
For Physical health, one should pursue periodic fasting, moderate eating, and nutrition.
For Buddhi Swsthya, one should pursue meditation, reading, writing, and thinking in solitude (Introspection). Meditation enhances Grahan Shakti or the capacity or power to absorb and interpret.
7. As age progresses, the body may decay gradually, but the mind can remain alert and active, thus Grahan Shakti (Power to think, learn and absorb) can remain strong till one leaves for another world.
8. It’s important for one to coach, guide, and teach the methodology to enhance Iccha Shakti. Gandhiji (Bapu), Divyangjan, and some of the great Olympians are good examples of strong Willpower.
9. Inner Gunas (qualities, attributes — sattva — goodness, calmness, harmonious, rajas -passion, activity, movement, and tamas -ignorance, inertia, laziness)also impact the Iccha Shakti.
One who has a high degree of Tamas may have low Iccha Shakti (both +ve and -ve).
One who shows more of Rajas temperament can have high Willpower but the same can be directed in a right or wrong manner yielding good or harmful outcomes.
Thus one needs to move towards Shanta Rajas (Learning Right & thus doing righteous).
Satto Gun shows the highest level of Willpower, where all desires can be controlled altogether and where Atma and Parmatma both are felt as One. (State of “Aham Brahmasmi — I am divinity”).
10. Will Power in context of Purushartha (shorturl.at/zNT28)— Willpower is generally high when it comes to Artha (economic considerations) and Kama (pleasure, love, satiation of senses) however with regards to Dharma (righteousness, Universal ethics & values) and Moksha (liberation from cycle of life & death, liberation from cycle of happiness & unhappiness), one needs to develop thoughts of Nishkaam Karma (Action without expectation of outcome) and practice to be on the right path.
11. Ideal State to be in is Samatva (equanimity or even-mindedness) and Sthitapragya (Steady-state of Wisdom).
12. Higher the Iccha Shakti (willpower), One can pursue Sheshtra Dharma (the higher act of righteousness in sync with Universal well-being) with ease and can do better and more good for the World and Mother Earth.
शक्तिः दुर्दम्येच्छाशक्त्याः आगच्छति: “Strength comes from an indomitable will.”
Gratitude to our Guru Dharm Pracharak, Bheeshma Pitamah awardee Padma Bhushan, Dr. Mrityunjay Athreya, and my fellow Advisory board members at Sarthak Educational trust for having this Satsang where knowledge could be imparted by our Guru.
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