“Tapasyā is threefold – of the body, of speech, and of mind. The first is service of others; the second, truthfulness; and third, control and concentration.” — Swami Vivekananda
Ancient sages unlocked latent energies and fully realized their true nature through tapasyā: converting heat in the body into something better, like energy. This involved meditation, simple living, and avoiding anything that did not purify them.
You may not want to become a sage. But you do want to stretch yourself, test your limits, and achieve bigger goals, right? How will you do it? By gaining control of your mind. This is possible when you build discipline by doing what’s difficult.
To get more from others is easy; to ask, “How can I be of service to others?” is difficult. To have nasty thoughts but sugarcoat your words is easy; to bring your thoughts and words at the same level is difficult. To do what you want is easy; to do what is important, even if it feels uncomfortable, is difficult.
Temptation will try to seduce you at every step. During such moments, remind yourself: No thanks. I’m going to build discipline. Remind yourself of your goal, your why behind building discipline.
If you can do what’s difficult today, life will become easier tomorrow.