45. *Complaining - a byproduct of worry*

In our yearly trip to the Himalayas, some of the participants complain about the hardships and unhygienic conditions. I have told people time and again that just being in the Himalayas is a blessing that not many people get and that they just have to enjoy that and leave the rest as trivia. Somehow, people get perturbed and talk about these things.

On one such occasion, two of the younger disciples were telling me, 'Swamiji, these people are talking about the hardships here and they try not to bother about it, but we can't even see the hardships! We are just enjoying ourselves all the time!' This is what I mean when I say that when you are happy unto yourself, there is no such thing such as 'my peace' or 'your peace'. Whatever is, Is, that's all. You are there, it is there and nothing is related. You simply move on in the same state of peace and bliss.

Complaining is worry-related because you are uneasy and caught up with words. If you see the wandering mendicants in the Himalayas, with just a small water jug and two sets of clothing, you will know that you don't really need anything more than what you have and therefore there is nothing to complain about.

Why do you complain? Actually, the people who complain are the ones who have been blessed with too many things; they don't know what else to talk about and so they complain! When you have enough and don't have to fight for survival, you will have the time to complain. When your survival is at stake, you will concentrate on your work and not complain, because if you start complaining, who will do your work?

In the Himalayas, it is the survival of the fittest. You have to be alert and aware all the time. There will be landslides that may descend upon you at any time. Suddenly snow will fall and cover up the familiar trails; food and other rations will be suddenly restricted due to non-availability.

Under such circumstances, you should watch the people there. They are such innocent, welcoming and warm people with not a care or complaint. There is a lot to learn from them. They don't see anything amiss; they just live happily that's all. They just rearrange their activities in accordance with what's happening around them. They don't worry and they don't complain.

Why don't you just carry on with whatever is available and keep moving? People who have been born and brought up in India, when they go to America and come back, complain about the conditions in India. Starting from the bathrooms to the roads, they complain about everything. It only shows that all your exposure has made you more finicky and complaining, instead of giving you vastness and making you blossom the way you should.

When you understand that you are showered not because you are worthy of it but because Existence simply showers on anyone and anything, you will stop complaining. You complain because you feel you are worthy of something and have not been given that.

Be very clear: no one is worthy or unworthy; no one is a saint or sinner. It is all in the understanding and moving in tune with nature that makes you a receiver of Existence and its gifts. It is always a deep understanding that gives you a shift in consciousness.

If you are open, Existence showers. Existence is continuously showering, only we don't know how to receive it. We are so busy collecting words!