How to Come out of Frustration

“Fear, anger, misery, frustration, depression, and despair are all products of a mind that you have not taken charge of.”- Sadhguru

When situations don’t go as expected, we come across frustration as a common reaction. Over time, it has the potential to lead to aggression and depression. Long term frustration can result in mental health issues, deteriorate heart health and can even trigger gastrointestinal problems. So, how do we avoid reacting to unpleasant circumstances? How do we handle our emotions when life situations don’t go as planned? In his conversation with Grammy-nominated singer and rapper 6lack, Sadhguru sheds light on the importance of maintaining inner balance in order to live a full-fledged life. 

6lack: “If I start my day in the right way, if I take care of my body, if I have the right conversations,

then I feel more conditioned to handle anything else that happen. What do you do?”

Sadhguru: “Well I live my life wild, no discipline. I don’t know where I will sleep, where I will wake up. So I don’t have any discipline, except that my day normally extends to 18 to 20 hours. Trying to slow down a bit but it’s only picking up speed and momentum. But because I made myself in such a way that nobody other than me determines what happens within me. So nobody can frustrate me, nobody can make me unhappy or angry so I have no issue if they wake me up at 2:00 a.m. in the morning and ask me something.”

“So I don’t see activity and people and challenges and impediments as anything that fundamentally disturbs me in any way. It’s just that some things will make your work better, some things will impede things. So in that context I’m looking, that’s all. I’m never looking at any activity or any person as somebody who can make my life or break my life, because I’ve taken that and kept it in my hands absolutely. Or in other words, I’m just conscious of every thought and emotion that happens within me so I can think wild and feel wild and let myself go where I want because it’s only happening according to the way I want it.”

“As I said earlier, if you create a little distance, you will see, you will understand the whole mechanics of how this works. But if you’re in it, it looks like it’s such a complicated affair. And about being mindful, no, I’m not mindful of anything. I’m generally mindless. Yes, I don’t have a single thought on my head. I just walk like I’m a 5 year old boy. Just joyfully looking at everything, a bird or a butterfly, man, woman, everything I’m looking at carefully. Not with any intent, simply looking because I have eyes, I must see everything that I can see. So if you have keenness of attention, both internally and externally, I don’t think you have to struggle with who will disturb you, what will disturb you, what will throw you off. Inner balance is the most important thing.”

“You may have intelligence, you may have genius, you may have talent, you may have many things, you may even have a lot of wealth. Once there is no balance, all these things will turn against you. Above all, balance. It’s very, very important. If you are balanced, whatever you have, your intelligence, your capabilities, your talents will naturally find the best expression possible.”

“Or in other words if you’re well balanced, everything that you can do in your life you will do. In your life, if you do not do what you cannot do, there is no problem. If you do not do what you can do, you’re a disaster. It’s my wish and my blessing you should not become such such a disaster. So there is a simple process that you know you can download. 12-15 minutes a day you can do it. It’s called Isha Kriya. Initially you listen to it and do it. It’s guided for some time. If you do it for let’s say maybe 15 days or a month, after that you can even do it without any guidance, you can do it by yourself. Every day just reminding yourself and linking your breath to it. Especially if you do it just before going to bed, just a simple way of creating little distance between you and your body, between you and the psychological process.”