How to choose a wise and creative way of accomplishing profoundly beneficial and Godly integrated actions
by eminent yoga teacher Gregorian Bivolaru
Surely there have been times in our lives when we have asked ourselves: “Why do I do what I do?”
It is well known that human beings do not passively receive external influences nor do they react mechanically to the demands of everyday life. The choices we make are in some way determined by certain internal demands, needs or pre-existing orientation, the sum effect of which makes our specific selectivity manifest.
The internal forces that impel us to act in a certain way are what we call motivation. If we appeal to the concept of motivation, we will be able to find answers to questions such as the ones outlined above. Knowing and becoming aware of our motivations allows us to discover what really causes various behaviors that seem to defy rational explanations. Motivation is a set of internal states of necessity which exist and are present in the microcosm of the human being and which stimulate and guide behavior towards their fulfillment.
The category of the states of necessity includes a set of internal factors that activate, guide and regulate voluntary actions, such as needs, motives, interests, beliefs, ideals.
Motivation plays the role of a sui generis “filter”, through which we receive and then assimilate external and internal influences. Through motivation we can only become “permeable” from an internal point of view to those stimuli that are capable of fulfilling some of our inner needs. That is why motivations are in some way decisive for the choices we make. Motivation is an important contributing factor in formulating a particular choice. Knowing all this, it is natural to ask: “How exactly can we know what really motivates us?”.
Specialists in the fields of personal development have systematized a certain practical method that involves compiling a small ranking of our existential concerns in three categories. The first category is values. Personal values can be discovered, as a rule, by answering honestly and spontaneously the question: “At what moment and in what situation do I feel in harmony with myself/self?” The second category is objectives. Objectives can be identified by inwardly answering the question: “What am I really passionate about in life?” The third category is the goals we pursue. Recognizing goals can be done by honestly answering the question: “What is it that I really want, what is it that I am able and striving to actually achieve?”.
Knowing all of this, we can do a brief period of introspection, which can highlight the fact that most of us, typically, see life primarily in terms of goals to be achieved and, as a consequence, either strive to achieve them or fail. But why strive for something big, broad and unattainable when we are not yet ready for it, and why not stick to what is smaller, accessible and attainable for us at that moment? Reflecting honestly on these issues, we will realize that we often get caught up in the hustle and bustle of everyday life and then end up missing the point – the subtle alchemy between these different levels of pursuits.
In order to maintain self-control over the events that occur in our lives and to transform our existence for the better, it is necessary to begin by rebalancing ourselves and to properly and harmoniously adjust our efforts towards these three poles of our existential concerns. And for this we need to have recourse to a very simple tool, namely the firm confidence that it is possible to choose wisely and then to act in a beneficent way at any moment of our existence. We will then discover that no decision is in reality irrevocable and that in fact, when we ask God for help, no situation is hopeless.
Of course, in life there are good times and bad times, but this is not fundamentally essential. By freely choosing and wisely exercising our ability to choose our own pursuits in life, in terms of values, objectives and goals, we can say that we have taken the first, firmly oriented step towards taking control of our own existence.
Further on, we will find that it will be easy to find the essential “meaning” of all the actions we have taken up to that point, and in doing so we can discover both the significance of successes and the essential meaning of failures. For example, we may be able to realize that perhaps our professional life is less emphasized, that we can work more relaxed, that we are able to devote more time to those we love, that we can find the energy to invest in a higher, spiritual pursuit, or that we can direct our attention towards awakening a form of beneficial knowledge that matters.
Finally, we will see that the content of the “recipe” used in practice is not so important, because in reality everyone expects something that is specific to them. What we are looking for is above all to get out of the state of dependence that can arise in relation to a single type of preoccupation, for example only professional, only financial or only sexual, etc. In reality, we will not be able to know and truly experience the feeling of fulfillment and inner fulfillment through what we undertake in our daily life, unless we engage detachedly in almost anything that is beneficial in life and that is necessary.
A second possible regrettable error, which many of us sometimes make, is the erroneous belief that if we have a particular preoccupation that requires us to “invest” our attention in a particular “here”, then, we wrongly assume, it is no longer necessary to “invest” our attention and preoccupations elsewhere, or, in other words, in a so-called “there”. Such a narrow vision makes us see our life as a kind of “zero-sum game”: what we invest somewhere, we necessarily have to take from somewhere else. For example, if someone decides to give more to their family, then they will mistakenly think that it will be at the expense of work and vice versa! Of course, time cannot be multiplied infinitely. But nevertheless, it is possible to engage constructively and creatively in different areas of life, while learning to order and compartmentalize our lives wisely and refusing to allow one area of our lives to interfere disharmoniously with or have an ominous influence on another.
If we come to the sad realization that the work we do today is affecting our family life, then we need to transform it. But this does not mean giving up on professional development. To solve such a possible dilemma, it is worthwhile to aim to see the situation from a different angle and then to maximize our energy and creativity in everything we do that is beneficial. This is one of the secrets of happiness and serenity.
If, after putting all this advice into practice, we will be delighted to see the emergence in our being of the tonic feeling that we are capable of giving the best of ourselves, then we will be even less obsessed with the results of our activities and will experience a wonderful state of Godly detachment. If we notice that our spiritual life tends to appear to us to be antagonistic to our professional life, then it would be best to modify our view of the meaning and specifics of each and then find a common, unified and coherent perspective from which we can view these two aspects of life, not as antagonistic aspects but as mysterious facets of the same unitary godly reality.
If we look at the practical side, we will see that, to some extent, human beings, in order to know happiness, appeal to a so-called demand for means, but in reality, there are no insurmountable limitations to fulfill this aspiration of their soul. In fact, the possible risks do not weigh so heavily against the firm inner certainty of being in accord and harmony with ourselves. When we become aware of this, we will find a mysterious and fascinating joy, and pleasure at the same time, in accomplishing beneficent actions. We will also find that we have an unexpected creative availability that gives us coherence in all that we do for good.
Of course, no one can claim that it is easy to invest fully, at all times, in whatever appears to be a favorable possibility for achieving lasting happiness. This ability can be the fruit of tenacious work with ourselves, which may even last a lifetime! But if we aim to be as aware as possible of the present moment, we can break out of the absurd and obsessive trap of the immediate result or, in other words, of “happiness produced” in the shortest possible time. By detaching ourselves from the imposing pressure of “producing immediate results”, we will be able to constantly enjoy the blessings of life in all its complexity, which is most often unrecognized by the vast majority of people.
Excerpt from Wise Advice for Harmonizing Daily Life, Volume 2, published by Shambala Publishing House, printed by Ganesha Publishing House.
yogaesoteric
February 6, 2025
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