Rishis Gaupayan brothers prayed to the Lord: ‘O Lord, my hardworking hands are none other than You. I have complete faith in them. They are responsible for all the achievements. I pray to You that may these hands always strive for the welfare of others.”

‘Enthusiasm’ drives and motivates one to perform his duties diligently. It is an essential asset in any performance. Just as a person who is hungry, must move his hands to raise the food to his mouth, or two wood sticks must be rubbed against each other for a long time, to generate fire, or one must dig deep into the ground to get water, similarly, one must have ‘enthusiasm and perseverance’ to succeed. An’ enthusiastic’ performer never uses the word ‘impossible’ because he does not shy away from challenges. Just as an ant keeps falling off the wall, but nevertheless ‘enthusiastically’ restarts her climb without giving up, similarly, one who ‘enthusiastically’ perseveres without losing site of his goal, always triumphs.

Once a millionaire invited all the people in his town for a feast. The arrangements for the feast were grand and a lot of delicacies were made. Each and everyone ate to their hearts content. As the millionaire was moving among his guests, he saw a laborer out on the streets busy with his work. The millionaire asked him if he had enjoyed the feast. The laborer calmly replied, “No sir, if I partake of the food you are offering, I will become lazy. I can only relish food I earn through hard work and enthusiasm.” The millionaire realized his folly and walked away. Laziness is man’s biggest enemy. Hence, Sant Tukaram Maharaj advises that “one should be self-driven to earn his own bread. Where people are hardworking and enthusiastic, the Lord Himself appears as success.”

Hard work strengthens the mind, body and intellect. This in turn leads to creativity. Many ground-breaking discoveries are the result of perseverance, ‘enthusiasm’ and hard work.  His Holiness Yogatapasvi Shree. Kaka Maharaj’s beautiful composition summarizes the importance of ‘enthusiasm’. The gist of the poem is as follows –

“O! With Enthusiasm I must tread the course,
Now I see that I was always near,
O! I see what I wanted to know,
The Eternal Light that pervades here”

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