|| THE ANXIETY TRENDS ||

There is an ongoing trend of social media, the most popular, in India. There is a special trend in India following the Western world, be it in education, fashion, or relationships. According to our Indian culture, we believe in simplicity, family values, rituals, having faith in responsibilities in relations, and having faith in spirituality, which has vanished. The word 'anxiety' was not so popular earlier, but now it's a must-search word in the dictionary, on the internet, and on Google. It is said that the new world will be totally based on creativity. If there is the best use of creativity, it will be really positive imagination, but if there is the wrong use of creativity, it will lead to anxiety, which will only result in negativity and distraction. If you take a small example, when we teach a kid not to go near hot water as they will get burned, the curiosity of the kid will lead them to go near hot water. But then, we also mentally prepare them by saying that if you feel hot, we will put ice or cold water, and it will settle down; that burn will not harm you. Something like this, we need to teach our kids whenever they get a pinch of anxiety.

Lord Krishna, the most popular kid on this earth, kept the environment around him lively during his childhood. He used to gaze at his cows, play the melodious basuri, and play with gwalas and gopis. During that time, there was a snake near the river Yamuna that was troubling the people of Gokul. Lord Krishna wanted to kill that snake, but he couldn't do so directly. Instead, he created a game to play with a ball. He played with the people, and the ball was thrown into the Yamuna River. He himself went in search of it and met the snake. With efforts, he first made the snake understand not to trouble people and released it from all its sins and bad karma. Now, Lord Krishna could have done this without making any effort, just killing the people who trouble.

Now, in this instance, what we have to learn is that Lord Krishna did this Leela only to make people understand that we need to remove negativity. But for that, you need to understand that sometimes people do things because they have compulsions. If you want to help someone come out of a negative environment, you need to have a creative way of dealing without harming anybody. Sometimes, we do certain things as a routine, and if we do them unconsciously, if somebody notices it and helps us indirectly, we need to accept it positively. For the person who is helping, we should have full faith. As I have total faith in Lord Krishna, whatever he does will be great for us. If we have confidence in ourselves and faith in the Lord, then there's no need for anxiety to come and enter our lives.

In today's world, parents start getting anxious. Mothers wonder, 'How will my pregnancy be?' Fathers worry, 'Will I earn enough to give my child the best education?' Parents question, 'Will our child be normal or not? Do I have enough professional help to deal with pregnancy now and after pregnancy?' Some conscientious parents of today ask, 'Which book should we read to gain good knowledge on how to deal with pregnancy and a newborn child?' There's also anxiety about not having enough money to give birth to a child. Once the child is born, there's concern about whether the child is doing the same or better than other kids. If other children are participating in activities or attending tuition and classes, what will happen if my child cannot attend? And many more such anxieties.

If you see our ancestors from earlier times, they never even thought about such questions. For them, a child's birth in this universe was a big celebration. All the kids were treated the same way, in a normal and natural manner. If they didn't understand certain things, they were taught in a creative and natural way. They used only one book, which teaches spirituality, i.e., one needs to balance karma and dharma, and one needs to understand what desire is and what reality is. Giving respect to elders and learning from their experiences, understanding the circumstances, and acting accordingly—without money, there was no difficulty in surviving. Believing in God and in yourself is the key to success for an individual. There was no scope for the word 'anxiety' to enter.

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Nowadays, we have become so dependent on technology that it is distorting our reality. I recently went to the beach, where a mother from what seemed to be a poor family had brought her kids to play on the beach. She was taking care of the younger kid who was jumping and dancing in the water. The other two kids, a sister, and a brother were playing a little away from the mother. Suddenly, one child, thinking that the mother was not around, started crying. Immediately, the other child started consoling him, saying, 'Don't worry, mother is around, and if we get lost, we are together.' I was amazed to see the conversation between those two kids who were just 5 or 6 years old. What confidence the mother had given them, despite having limited facilities! Afterward, the kids were with their mother, and she was enjoying with those three kids so beautifully. Just think about parents who have all the facilities and are educated—how do they behave?

On the other side, we had guests at home with a small child. The mother wanted to leave him at our house and go shopping. The child literally refused her to go and started crying. He was not crying because his mother was leaving; he was afraid that once his mom would go, her mobile would also go with her, and he didn't know what to do without it. Instead of allowing for the natural growth of the child, we are making them dependent on facilities and technology. If these things are taken away, they don't know what to depend on or what to do. The word 'anxiety' to live without these things enters their lives. There's anxiety to be with other kids, to compete with them, and to have education competing with them. I think normal, natural growth and thinking with your own brain provide the best growth.

The trend of anxiety has entered our lives due to the fast-paced technology revolution. We have started depending on it. The time has come when we need to balance it or limit our use, taking out time for good thoughts, emotions, feelings, and warmth. Spirituality, having faith in divine power, will play a very big role in making a change in our lives. Many people tell me that I should counsel or give live speeches, but I feel we need to change everything from the base level; only then is change possible. We should learn from animals and birds how they allow their kids to grow on their own. Birds let their kids fly and show them the right path. Plants grow in only one direction with appropriate minerals, sunlight, and water, and once they have a strong base, none of them can be destroyed. Let anxiety go, and hope and happiness be in our lives.