How To Remain Content (Santokh)?

[Amarjodh Singh]

Anyone know of any Katha/Gurbani which explains how to remain content? I guess that once you are content your jealousy also goes?

Thank you

:waheguru:

[dalsingh101]

Not wanting or expecting stuff you don't need to have helps.

[Amarjodh Singh]

That's true, but how can you get a frame of mind like that?

[MokhamSingh]

Anyone know of any Katha/Gurbani which explains how to remain content? I guess that once you are content your jealousy also goes?

Thank you

:waheguru:

Khalsa Ji

There is only one formula for perpetual contentment:

<a class="dict" href="http://www.srigranth.org/servlet/gurbani.dictionary?Param=ਕਬੀਰ" ;="">ਕਬੀਰ ਹਰਿ ਕਾ ਸਿਮਰਨੁ ਜੋ ਕਰੈ ਸੋ ਸੁਖੀਆ ਸੰਸਾਰਿ ॥

कबीर हरि का सिमरनु जो करै सो सुखीआ संसारि ॥

Kabīr har kā simran jo karai so sukẖī▫ā sansār.

Kabeer, whoever meditates in remembrance on the Lord, he alone is happy in this world.

Simran{meditation} can take the form of listening to Gurbani Paath , listening to Gurbani Katha , listening to Kirtan etc...

[OhTwadi]

^ :happy2:

[VanHelsingh]

To achieve contentment in this day and age is a mammoth task. There are so many forces vying for our attention, most of which are trying to pry us away from the spiritual side of life which we should be focusing upon. I guess releasing our grip on attachment (of all sorts) is the first step on this path.

[dalsingh101]

That's true, but how can you get a frame of mind like that?

Try using the principle of successive approximation. In other words build up to it slowly.

Start by identifying a few luxuries that you have in your life that you are really attached to. Then commit to going without them for a period (at least a month).

When you do this, at first it will seem dramatic and difficult. Then after a while you will become accustomed to going without. At the end of the period, hopefully you'd have learned to live with or without the luxury, without it effecting you too much.

The psychology of going without and living a spartan existence is usually developed by necessity, but a person can willfully refrain from indulging too. Once you go without and become content without the previously perceived neccesity, I think your thinking changes in terms of your understanding of what you think you need and what you can live a happy life without.

Once you've gone without a few things for a prolonged period you'd probably see life differently.

There is another unintentional, beneficial side effect from this too......

You end up with more money due to the savings through non-indulgence.

Areas you can cut out are ones involving extravagant food, technology, even fancy clothes.

At first just do these things as time constrained experiments rather than permanently. See what you learn from them?