You Can Learn To Manage All Kinds Of Stress

Stress levels of students are on the rise, as they are under pressure to perform superlatively in examinations. Stress is also the bane of executives who are dogged by competition and ambition. Stress means different things to different people. To a mountaineer, it is the challenge of pushing physical resources to the limit by striving to achieve a demanding goal. To the motorist, it can be the hassles of heavy traffic and pollution.

Stress is a major problem for many, but curiously, it is also a matter of pride in certain circles. The perception is that if you are not stressed, you are just not working hard enough. You toss and turn all night. The alarm doesn’t go off. You’re late for work. There’s a deadline to meet, but your computer is down with virus. Three cups of coffee later, your head still throbs. Your back hurts. Your eyes sting each time you blink.

Stress is the inability to cope with a real or imagined threat to your mental, physical, emotional and spiritual well-being, which results in a series of physiological responses and adaptations. It can be caused by both good and bad experiences. The Upanishads say that we are a part of the world and the world is a part of us. As human beings, we live at several levels. Coping refers to our efforts to manage stressful situations.

Make a list of possible sources of stress; it will help you understand and pay attention to issues that are a source of stress. We might have a classic case of ‘‘stress overlap’’ when everything seems to be going wrong, all at the same time. Be aware. Take a moment to determine your main source of stress at the current time, and work towards managing it.

People are often reluctant to reveal that they are stressed and will resist any suggestion that action needs to be taken, as such stress sits in the ‘shadows’, hidden from view. This will continue until it bursts out into the open, by which time it might be either too late for remedial action, or damage control becomes costly. A further shadow can be seen when an executive chooses not to intervene in a potentially difficult situation, where someone appears to be stressed. This might be because he doesn’t know how to deal with it, and so feels embarrassed at exposing his lack of knowledge. Alternately, he might take a ‘let sleeping dogs lie’ approach and just hope that it will go away.

Either way, the stress situation gets worse and recedes deeper into the shadows, and thus becomes harder and costlier to address at a later date. Everyone responds differently to stress. That is why some people seem to thrive during stressful situations, while others are exhausted. Pressure is inevitable. The solution lies in active management. Pressure is a neutral force; it can be channelled for good or bad. Pressure can be the stimuli; we need to enjoy our lives and learn new skills, experience excitement and get things done. It can also be the force that causes depression and anxiety, breaks relationships, making one miss deadlines, and even become seriously ill.

Resilient people accept responsibility for their life and their choices, and they understand what’s gone wrong, and then try to fix it. So, they are able to cope with stress. Those who are not naturally resilient can learn from the examples of others.

There Is No Reality Other Than Shiva

Shiva has a unique place in the Hindu pantheon. Being incorporeal, Shiva alone is usually not represented by a deity, and instead, is depicted by the lingam. The names of Shiva temples in India bear the suffix ‘nath’ or ‘ishwar’ to indicate that he is the preceptor of all beings. One of the many names of Shiva is Sarveshwar, Lord of all. Images of the deity Shankar often show him meditating in front of a Shivalingam.

Hindu mythology speaks of Krishna and Rama as avatars, they were born and they died. They are said to have worshipped Shiva. Other gods also take physical birth, but Shiva neither takes birth, nor dies.

Shiva incarnates himself in a human body, an occurrence that is celebrated during Shivaratri. Shiva’s incarnation is associated with ‘ratri’ or night because he manifests in this world when it is enveloped in the darkness of ignorance and evil. Omniscient Shiva dispels the darkness by giving humans the light of knowledge. The three parallel lines on the Shivalingam are symbolic of Shiva’s knowledge of the three aspects of time. The eye in the middle of the lines indicates the eye of wisdom he gives to human souls.

The Mahabharata refers to the regenerative role of Shiva, saying that when the world had plunged into darkness and vicious proliferation, “an egg-like form of light descended and established a new order”. In the Dharma Samhita part of Shiva Purana, it is said that at the end of Kaliyuga, during the time of destruction, a magnificent light revealed itself, blindingly luminous, radiant and eternal, and the world was created through this light.

Shivaratri is commemoration of the arrival of Divinity in this world to salvage humanity. In the Bhagwad Gita Krishna says that whenever righteousness declines and unrighteousness arises, he manifests for the protection of the good, destruction of the wicked, and reestablishment of a righteous order.

The Gita hints at this role of Shiva when Krishna says: “I am ‘mahakaal’ (God of Death). Death can never approach me.” Such an assertion can be made only by Shiva, the Supreme, Paramatma.  Soul, one who never takes birth, is Mrityunjaya, immortal.

There is no room for confusion about the roles of Shiva and Krishna, because there is but one God, though deities may be many. The Supreme of all souls, across different faith traditions, is understood as being incorporeal and omnipotent. The Ocean of Peace, the Saviour and Almighty, is forever beyond the limitations of a physical existence.

He performs his tasks by giving power to his spiritual children, these gods and goddesses, the slayers of demons, who are also embodiments of purity, love and wisdom. They are not supernatural beings, but humans with divine qualities. They foster these qualities in their fellow humans, nurturing a new, elevated consciousness, and thus serve as divine instruments in the task of creating a righteous world order.

This is the secret of Maha Shivaratri, which will be observed on March 4 this year, the night the Supreme comes to liberate his children from suffering and sorrow, as promised in the Gita.