Strength Of Character

Strength Of Character

Neither money pays, nor name, nor fame, nor learning; it is CHARACTER that can cleave through adamantine walls of difficulties.
-SWAMI VIVEKANANDA

"Character is the sum total of a person's values, beliefs and personality. It is reflected in our behaviour and in your actions. It needs to be preserved more than the richest jewel in the world. To be a winner takes character. George Washington said, " I hope i shall always possess firmness and virtue enough to maintain what I consider the most valuable of all tittle, the character of an honest man."

Most of our behaviour is habitual- Comes automatically without thinking. Our character is the sum total of our habits. If we have positive habits, then we have good character. Conversely, if we have negative habits, others will find our character lacking. Habits are a lot stronger than logic and reasoning. In the life cycle of habit formation, a habit starts by being to weak to be felt, and ends up becoming too strong to get out of. Habits can be developed by default or determination. If we don't decide what habits to form, by default we many end up with bad habits.

If you really want to judge of the character of a man, look not at his great performance. Every fool may become a hero at once time or another. Watch a man do his most common actions; those are indeed the things which will tell you the real character of a great man.
The ability to show courage in the face of adversity; show self-restraint in the face of temptation, choose happiness in the face of hurt, show character in the face of despair, and see opportunity in the face of obstacles are all valuable traits to possess. But these traits do not just appear; they are the result of constant and consistent training, our mental and physical. In the face of adversity, our behaviour, weather positive or negative can only be what we have practiced. When we practice negative traits such as Cowardice or dishonesty in small events, and hope to handle major events in a positive way, it won't happen because that's not what we have practiced.

Every work that we do, every movement of the body,every thought that we think, leaves an impression on the mind-stuff, and Even when such impressions are not obvious on the surface, they are sufficiently strong to work beneath the surface, subconsciously. What we are every moment is determined by the sum total of these impressions on the character; each man,s character is determined by the sum total of these impressions. If good impressions prevail, the character becomes good; if bad, it becomes bad. If a man continuously hears bad words, thinks bad thoughts, does bad actions, his mid will be full of bad impressions and they will influence his thought and work with out his being conscious of the fact. He will be like a machine in the hands of his impressions, and they will forces him to do evil, and that man will be a bad man; he cannot help it. Similarly, if a man thinks good thoughts and does good works, the sum total of this impressions will be good and they, in a similar manner, will force him to do good, even in spite of himself. When such is the case, a man's good character is said to be established.
-SWAMI VIVEKANANDA

Under adverse circumstances, some people break records and others break down. John F. Kennedy once said that it is a mark of character how well person behaves when things are not going well. When things are going well for us, it is easy to be logical,kind and gracious.But when things aren't going well and we're under lot of pressure,some people can't think clearly and snap at others around them,while others remain clear-headed and continue to treat others with respect.Adversity reveals a persons character.
There is a Russian saying;"A hammer shatters glass but forges steel"There is a lot of truth in the saying.Are we made of glass or steel?it is the same hammer.Just as carbon determines the quality of steel,character determines the quality of a man.
Character-building starts from infancy and goes on until death.Character does not need success.It is success.Just like gardener has to keep weeding to prevent weeds from eating the life of the garden,we need to keep building and developing our character by weeding out our faults.
Ability will get you success;character will keep you successful. someone once said,"our thoughts lead to actions,actions lead to habits,and habits form character."character leads to destiny.
The only remedy for bad habits is counter habits;all the bad habits that have left their impressions are to be controlled by good habits.Go on doing good,thinking holy thoughts continuously;that is the only way to suppress base impressions.Never say any ma is hopeless,because he only represents a character,a bundle of habits,which can be checks by new and better ones.Character is repeated habits,and repeated habits alone can reform character.