THERE ARE MANY POINTS IN LIFE when your emotions become overwhelming. It is so easy, in those moments, to give in to your emotions. However, when you give in to your emotions, you suffer the most.
Endurance in spiritual terminology refers to the ability to handle one’ s emotions even in the most difficult of situations. Endurance is like durability.
There are different kinds of suitcases on the market made with different materials. The most durable suitcases will be sold at the most expensive price. The durability of luggage is assessed by applying pressure to see how much the material can take before it is damaged.
A material that is not easy to break is durable. If a human being doesn’ t crack under pressure and survives against the odds, he has endurance. As more people learn how to manipulate emotions, having endurance is a necessary skill in today’ s world.
When you surrender yourself to your emotions, you inhibit your ability to think clearly. Emotions, when they are overwhelmingly excessive, behave like alcohol. Some people are so affected by their emotions that if you were to check their heart rate and blood pressure when they are in an intense emotional state, the reading would be the same as if they were drunk. Any news – whether it is extremely good or extremely bad – will run shockwaves through their bodies.
At the time of adversity, you can control your emotions through prayer, meditation, yoga and various different things. On the other hand, when some people are extraordinarily happy, they behave as if they are intoxicated. In this scenario, it is not easy to calm their emotional state.
The more emotionally charged up you are, the less you are using your intelligence. This is where the danger lies.
When you are controlled by your emotions, you are vulnerable to being manipulated. Some people with bad intentions will seize the opportunity to use your emotions to their own advantage.
HH Younus AlGohar says,‘ Guard your emotions like you guard your virginity. Anybody can come and tell you a story. You shouldn’ t expose your emotions to people.’
When you are in an emotional state, everything looks different. When you are angry, in the heat of the moment, you say things that you don’ t mean. In normal life, you will see that there are many hurdles for you, but when you are extremely happy, you will see no boundaries and you will think that you can do anything.
Emotions are so powerful that they supersede all your intellect. Sometimes, these emotions can really misguide you. If the intellect is separated from your emotions, you are in trouble 1. Make sure you control your emotions as much as possible in order to safeguard yourself from all emotional manipulations that may take place.
WHY DO WE PRAY IN HARD TIMES?
Food for thought about patterns of human behaviour
Religious people find solace in prayers and worship during times of adversity. The majority of people who practise a religion are not from well-to-do families, especially in the developing world. In these countries, worshippers flock to their respective worship places to pray to God for food. When someone gives them food, they say,‘ God heard my prayers; I was hungry and someone fed me.’
HH Younus AlGohar notes,‘ This is the pattern of our behaviour. You will never appreciate the efforts of the person who helped you, but thankfulness from you will go to God.’
So in hard times, prayers have a soothing effect; they are a way for religious people to control their negative emotions. When religious people are overjoyed, on the other hand, how would they control their emotions? Most people, in happy times, forget God. They only remember him at the time of need.
1 For more tips on how to control your emotional state, refer to our May edition of the Messiah Herald: Self-Awareness Level 2, Part 1: Save Society with EQ!
MESSIAH HERALD / ISSUE 05 / JUN 2017 11