Patience is the greatest penance. Patience is a soul force. Only a strong person can be patient. If we force certain things when the time is not right enough, then we fritter away our energy. Try we must; then we should allow things to happen. God is the greatest penance. Meditate on God and develop patience.
And irritable mind is a sign of weakness. Constant moving of limbs and swinging the body to and fro is a sign of weakness. Drink deep the nectar of wisdom. Cultivate calmness. Engage the mind in useful works and meditate on lofty thoughts. Success and peace come to a man of patience and perseverance. Develop patience.
To be patient is not to be lazy. To be patient is to work hard with right means and pure motives and never to get excited or anxious for the results. As the Bhagavad Gita puts it, "to work you have the right, but not to the fruits thereof." Of course the fruit shall be infinite when you do not desire it. The mind should be saturated with the philosophy of action. Then it will offer its best in action and wait patiently and happily for things to happen. When causes are present, effects take care of themselves. Peace and happiness follow a man of patience. It is a divine virtue. Develop patience.
Things done in a hurry lack perfection. Hurry causes worry. Hear what others have to say but reserve your judgment. Get ready but wait for the call. Sow the seed, nourish it, but do not dig it out every day to see what is happening. Think noble thoughts; act wisely; speak the truth; speak kind words; love everyone; give and forgive--then see what happens. Do not be after name or fame. Do not be anxious about what others think about you. Are you satisfied with yourself? That is what is important. Develop patience.
Excited emotions cause anxiety. Anxiety destroys peace and happiness. It is the desire for the fruit of one's efforts that excites the emotions. It is the idea of future happiness that destroys the happiness which exists now. So calming the emotions is the way to cultivate patience. If you purify the emotion than it is calmed. Meditation and prayer are the ways to purify emotion. Meditate every day; pray every hour; continue a prayerful thought every minute. By this, the strength of the spirit will be developed in you. It is this strength that gives you patience. Develop patience.
When you know that God loves you, you need not be impatient, for the good God shall never let you down. Suppose He sends some obstacles--it is to test your patience. We should consider difficulties as blessings in disguise. They chisel our irritated mind and make us strong. Depend on God for strength. Know that He has created you for a great purpose. Know that you should be prepared to stand in the presence of God at the appointed hour. Develop patience.
Impatience causes anger. Anger destroys memory by clouding the intellect. Anger destroys peace and happiness. It not only pollutes the whole atmosphere, but drains the energy of the angry man himself. Even as a fire born of wood consumes the wood itself, so does anger consume the man who is angry. Transform anger energy into patience. Just take a deep breath and relax whenever you lose patience and are about to become angry. Walk in the garden for a while and think about the horrible consequences of anger and the great blessings of patience and love. Develop patience.
There are times when quick decisions are to be taken. There are times that demand quick actions. This does not mean that you must act in impatiently. Instead, a man who has developed patience due to that reserve energy is capable of quick decisions and quick actions whenever such a course is important. You cannot wait patiently when a house is burning and a person is drowning. You may have to act quickly. But that does not mean that you should lose patience. If you do, then you will burn yourself or drown yourself, instead of saving the situation. Patience gives you the power of right decisions and quick actions whenever they are called for. Therefore, develop patience.
Patience to be successful in anything in life should be something like, "you cannot wait, but you should wait." If you just wait without proper thinking and prompt actions, then you will get nothing. If you can't wait then you will be sorry for your hurry, which will cause a great loss. It should be something like the parents waiting with inpatient patience for the baby to come. It should be something like a devotee telling God, "I can't wait to see you, but I should." There is a joy in, "I can't wait," because it is the sadhana or discipline needed for the realization. There is also joy in knowing, "I should wait," because you know definitely that the sunrise follows the dawn. Your pining shall be followed by the vision.
Develop patience.
(Essence of Bhagavad Gita and Bible, p. 128.)