“BELIEVE in yourself, believe in the right path”. When you have this realisation, it would put you on the right path. You are living among those people who are butchers, then why do you feel grieved by looking at them. Those who are committing wrong they would face the consequences. Why are you distressed? Why do you feel embarrassed? Your stand should then be: get rid of frustrations, pain, and embarrassment. Do not wish bad for others. Leave all
these feelings.

Yashoverma was the king of Malwa. He had the habit of keeping with him an astrologer. The astrologer used to always calculate whether the stars were favourable or not. Some time he would say the Saturn was oblique, sometime the Mars was not favourable, and some times the journey would be inauspicious in some particular direction and so on so forth. The king always believed in such predictions. Once the neighbouring king attacked his kingdom from the eastern side. Believing in the predictions of his astrologer he asked his people not to worry and remain engaged in their normal activities. He asked them to wait for his order to face the attacker.

The astrologer warned the king that if he moved towards the east, he would certainly get defeated. He looked at the king and said that the star lines were not favourable. The king followed his advice and thought that the attack should be mounted from the western side. The king ordered his forces to move towards the west. His minister tried to stop the king. The king scolded him and said that astrology has been a good science and we should take advantage of
such a science. The astrologer even suggested to the king that since Rahu was suppressing Mars it would be better to wait for another week because by then the star lines would become favourable. After hearing the arrangements of star lines the king was satisfied.

As the king walked a little he noticed that a farmer was moving towards the east. He asked the farmer why he was walking towards east; the farmer replied that because his farms were located in that direction. The accompanying astrologer advised the farmer not to go towards the east because it is inauspicious to move in that direction. He turned back and stood facing the king and the astrologer. The astrologer asked him to show him his palm so that he could study his lines. The farmers put forward the back of his hand in front of the astrologer. The astrologer admonished him and told him to show his palm.

Closing his hand the farmer replied that he would not like to spread his palm before anyone. He said that he was not in the habit of spreading his palm before anyone who is habitual of begging. He said that he was in the habit of earning so why to spread the palm before anyone. He said that he always went towards his farms, which are in the east, and that he had been going there for the last thirty years. “I have been going there since I was twenty years old. I started working in those fields from that time and till now there have not been any inauspicious occasions for me.” He said that if he would have been thinking and behaving like you he would have never earned anything from his fields. “The turban that I am wearing on my head and my fields are my honour. Spreading my hands before anyone would not bring me any livelihood and honour”, he told the king.

The astrologer told the farmer that the conflicting stars could spell disaster and ruin for him. The farmer laughed and said: “I am the resident of Malwa Desh and my country is the place of Mahakal [Lord Shiva]. I always prayed to him. Even if the death god appeared before Lord Shiva, Mahakal would swallow him. Lord Shiva has encouraged me to do my duty. The lines of the plough would delete the lines of bad-luck. I try to transform the lines of misfortune into good luck by reciting the name of Mahakal.” When he heard what the farmer had just said and even before the astrologer could say anything, the king dismissed his astrologer forthwith and said that he would build his luck with his own hands. Reciting the praise to Lord Shiva, the king mounted attack on the invading enemy and won the battle.

Upon his return to the capital, the King told his minister, Bhanumitra, that he had now realised that the action could alter the lines of misfortune. If a person did not work hard he would surely meet with misfortune. God has not made any direction which could be inauspicious. All directions are made by the God and, therefore, they are auspicious. The true fact is that when the condition of the mind is in a bad state the directions would also be bad and  inauspicious. If you are able to straighten up your mental frame then all the directions would also be auspicious and the success would be yours.

So, it is said that one should continue to do one’s duty, get rid of desires which tie up a person. We should try to stay above desires. This should be our objective. If we are not able to achieve our objective in one way then we should try to move into another direction. May be we can go forward in that direction and make a better place for ourselves.