Invoking the Power to Discern

Many attributes are fundamental to a successful administration such as being a visionary, a good communicator, optimistic, self-assured, encouraging, and empowering – and these attributes generally are visible in many successful administrators. One may or may not realize this, but there are certain powers in a successful administrator which bring about these attributes in him and one of the most important powers is– the power to discern or discriminate.
The word ‘discern’ has great value and depth. To discern is ‘to separate,’ ‘to make a distinction, or ‘to differentiate’. Thus, discernment is the ability to examine, test, try, judge, or prove something with the result of separating, or distinguishing the good from the bad or the truth from the false.
We all have read about the wise King Solomon who asked the Lord for wisdom, and that God, being pleased with this request, instantaneously blessed him with this gift. But in Solomon’s words, we see that he requests discernment, more than wisdom. He says, “O Lord my God, give me your servant, therefore, an understanding mind to govern your people, that I may discern between good and evil, for who is able to govern this your great people”. This teaches us that God values discernment and honours those who seek it.
Importance of Power of Discernment& Right Decision-Making
Discernment communicates maturity, experience, and wisdom. Lacking the power to discern a person may not realize the true potential of himself or of others whereas with this power one can achieve wonders. There’s no denying the fact that a diamond remains a worthless stone till a jeweller discerns its value. Similarly, a good and successful administrator is able to discern between good and bad situations or between right and wrong people and thereby create value for any organization. He is able to become non-judgmental or uncritical about people’s behaviour. Power to discern makes him analyze peoples’ intentions and sanskaras which triggered that behaviour. This helps him to empathize and respond with inner peace and not react to their negativity. Based on this power to discern he is able to achieve success because it brings precision in his decisions and choices. Discernment is the power that helps us to step back from ourselves, any situations and the influence of others and see a clear picture and choose how to act for the best.
At any given moment in life, one has to choose. It could be as hard or as simple as choosing between getting up in the morning when the alarm goes off or pressing the ‘snooze’ button and turn sides to sleep for some more time before going to work. An administrator has to make several decisions at the workplace which means the act of choosing between two or more courses of action – passive or pro-active, positive or negative, indifferent or attentive etc. It also involves choosing between possible solutions to a problem or between benefit and loss. Some of the problems are more severe or complex than others and they demand right and accurate solutions.It’s not always easy to choose a hard right way over an easy wrong one. Good administrators know the potential consequences of their unethical choices. Sometimes, the best route is to take no action at all. That is also a choice. Reactions mean being controlled by external stimuli and it is a state which usually disempowers oneself. Therefore, the power to discern is intrinsically connected to the power to decide (nirnaya lene ki shakti) which an administrator needs more than anyone else. You need to check which factors influence your decision making and push you either in one direction or the other. There are many factors that control and limit our power to make the right, and more importantly, free choices. These factors primarily include influences of people that dominate our ways of thinking, our beliefs, our attitudes, even our complete personalities, etc. Moreover, we are also limited by the influence of our own fears, attachments, desires, biases or other negative and waste thoughts, which result in a lack of focus.
How to Increase the Power to Discern
To opt for the right or to make good, better or best decisions, power to discern is fundamental. This power helps us to remain calm and choose the right response even if no one else is being that way. The answer to increasing this power lies in soul-consciousness. Clarity is needed to increase the power to discern. But what kind of clarity is needed? Clarity of mind or clarity of intellect is the pre-requisite for enhancing the discerning power. It means seeing things from the third eye of wisdom and not merely with two physical eyes. It means listening to the voice within or our intuition and not merely with two physical ears. This power delivers a capacity to see three aspects of time: to look at the past, present and future implications of different options and possibilities in order to assess accurately the best avenue of action.
Awareness of the Self
Today, we are living in a world which is entangled in absolute body consciousness. The world is divided on the basis of gender, nation, race, creed, and positions which all are created on a physical level. Unfortunately, like a spider we are caught in our self-created webs due to ignorance of the fundamentals of life. Awareness of the self is extremely important. When we are able to discern ourselves, then we are able to use the power to discern with people and situations. We need to realize that we are not the physical bodies having a soul but we are ‘a soul’ driving the physical body.Since ‘mind’ or ‘intellect’ is part of the soul and not of the body, we need to be soul-conscious first, for the cleansing of our minds.
Decluttering the Mind
If we understand the mechanism of the mind, although it is too complex to understand, yet knowing the fundamentals of its working, it becomes easy to control it. Just as a car mechanic knows how the car engine and its other parts work, he is able to control the functioning of the car according to his wishes.
It is well known fact that as the quantity increases, the quality decreases. If the mind is cluttered with too many thoughts, the quality of most of the thoughts will not be good. There are all sorts of thoughts – negative, unnecessary, unwanted and even toxic – which are stored in the mind in the form of memories, beliefs, opinions and impressions. Having too many thoughts, and that too which are not positive- is the reason people today feel themselves confused, puzzled and stressed. Living with fear, stress or any kind of tension has become a norm without an exception due to the widespread negativity all around.
The topmost area of the mind is the area of conscious thought or the conscious mind in which thoughts arise like bubbles. The conscious mind determines the actions while the subconscious mind determines the reactions. The subconscious mind remains in a dormant state where all our memories, impressions and belief systems are stored from which our reactions or responses generate.Due to large number of thoughts that occupy an average mind, a person doesn’t even realize that he himself is creating those thoughts. Most people think that thoughts come on their own which is not correct. How can thoughts generate themselves on their own unless the soul allows them to? Ideally, the thoughts that run in the mind should be exactly those which one wants or likes to create but since we do not pay any attention to our thoughts and nor do we exert any control over them, they go out of control and our lives move in an unfocused way. Consequently, our responses to a situation come out as reactions, unbridled and often hasty. As a result, things do not work out as desired. Then we develop a habit of blaming others and circumstances for everything that goes wrong.
Thoughts once created are followed by feelings.Feelings are clearly reflected in the form of physical changes in our body; mouth salivates with joy, heart beats faster with excitement or anxiety, stomach sinks with fear or goose pimples pop up due to nervousness. This is because the soul and body are interconnected and work in complementary ways, so that what goes on in the soul is definitely reflected in the body, and what goes on in the body is reflected in the soul. The degree to which both these processes happen in each individual is different. Therefore, thoughts as well as feelings are created in the soul. Understanding this, enables one to break free from the cycles of unwanted thoughts and feelings.
Rajyog Meditation Shows the Way
Rajyog meditation is the art of self-realization meaning to connect with our inner core (the soul). Then the soul connects with the Supreme Soul – Father of all souls – and through this connection starts receiving all His divine qualities and divine powers. It is a very easy and unique technique to get empowered with all the divine powers and virtues, and hence it is also called ‘sahaj yog’ meaning easy meditation. Just as we charge a mobile phone by plugging it to the electricity source, similarly the Soul gets charged with the powers when its consciousness is connected to the Supreme Consciousness- the source of all divine powers and virtues.
The first thing that Rajyog meditation teaches us is to cleanse (declutter) the mind. Let’s say that it separates the wheat from the chaff.Cleansing the mind is to get rid of the thoughts which are impure, negative and unnecessary and creating the thoughts which are pure and positive. God and nobody else has an unlimited stock of these positive energies which He bestows upon us, unconditionally. This Divine energy calms the mind and helps us create those 3Ps thoughts – pure, positive and powerful which consequently augments our capacity to focus and pay attention. By focusing we recognize the hidden and incognito opportunities, make better decisions and also have the power to sustain them.
Since Rajyog Meditation helps the mind to relax and control the thought patterns, one can reach the deeper and more subtle states of your inner potential for peace and purest love (the positive). One is also able to clean out unnecessary or negative memories. When we withdraw and experience inner silence, we connect to the sub-conscious or intuitive mind to discern. You invoke the spiritual power that allows you to transform habits that are not very healthy and the beliefs that sustain them. In deep silence one can hear the silent whispers of the Supreme Soul. Out of feeling love and peace you can purify and calm the turbulent (rough) waters that there are at times in the subconscious mind. While meditating, one reviews whether there is something that has influenced you and you try to clean it out, so that only the highest, the most positive, and the most beautiful, remains inside you and comes out of you, as well.
The more you practice relaxation, positive thinking and meditation, the more you rise above all the negativity and experience the positive qualities and powers. One has to remember that you are not avoiding life or the world around you. Instead, you are learning to take control of your awareness and involvement; you are able to (mentally) disconnect from the situation or people when you want; you can be mentally sharper in understanding (what is visible as well as subtle or non-visible) all that is happening around you and give yourself the time and the personal space to respond accurately and positively. With Rajyog Meditation the power of discernment increases and consequently the power of choosing accurately also enhances a great deal and you are able to exercise your choice with full confidence and total control.