It is a great honour to have been asked to write a Foreword to this amazing book “Living in High Morale - Charhdee Kalaa”.
When Sohan Singh told me about the work he was about to undertake, I knew from his previous four books to his name that he would make a success of it. I had no idea of the breadth and depth of his work until I read the draft. I believe that Dr Jaswant Singh kept him focussed by meticulously checking each and every word and pointing out anomalies wherever they occurred.
This book has a potential to play a significant role in reviewing our modern, extremely stressful and material driven life that runs through the hands of the clock. The rat-race allows no designated time for the self nor our families and certainly no time for living any meaningful life which is essentially the foundation for human nature.
The toll of stress experienced in our daily life from various sources has led the authors to pose an important question: Is there a way we can advance our understanding to the social evil of stress-related depression, the fast pace of life, a desire for a fast and flashy materialistic life, ill-health, break up in relationships, loss of a loved one, an over-use of our fast-growing technology and dependence on drugs and alcohol which many of us face today?
Sohan Singh and Dr Jaswant Singh have very succinctly put forward coping strategies which form effective tools to live in High Morale through difficult times. Their work pivos on quotes from the Guru Granth Sahib, the Sikh Scripture, which carries universal values; but in addition, the authors have included works from other great philosophers too in an attempt to answer life’s questions.
The authors describe High Morale or Charhdee Kalaa (a term used extensively in Sikh Philosophy) “as an attitude of self-discipline, uncompromising and courageous acceptance of all that life brings”.
The strategies offered to live in High Morale are very persuasive: “a stress-free, high morale spiritual journey is like an oyster that creates pearl out of a grain of sand. The grain is an irritant to the oyster, so what does the oyster do to overcome the discomfort? It creates a smooth protective coating that encases the sand and provides relief. The outcome - a beautiful pearl.”
They have striven meticulously to expose the symptoms that go alongside depression which often go undetected for long periods “until we fall off the cliff”.
Chapters one and two provide a crucial relationship between the mood swings, the body and the mind. The awareness of this tri-lateral connection enables an understanding towards a better mental and physical health that can reduce stress.
The other chapters offer a remarkable insight into how the human brain responds to stimulus and how people can retrain the brain to take control of various emotions and modify behaviour. They also explore the true nature of human beings and how to awaken the mind “through beliefs and attitudes that can nourish our inner pristine nature to allow people to experience high morale”.
Emphasis is laid on the fact that worries, stress and mental health problems arise because of our inability to explore our inner resources. We want quick-fixes from our negative emotional problems but do not invest in anything that can bring enduring inner-peace and tranquility.
If you sense that you want to break out of the prison of the rat-race, materialism, competition, fast life and self-destruction to a better life of High Morale, you have come to the right source.
This book will surely lead you to understand your true nature through introspection, and thus increase your capacity for compassion, kindness, love and gratitude which form the basis for human nature. These virtues will allow you to flourish your inner self and let go off negativity to allow you to live in High Morale despite whatever you face in life.
I wish the readers of this book an improved, fulfilled and reflective life by searching and shifting to a wider perspective of life through the strategies offered by the authors.
Perminder Kaur Jolly (Dr)
PhD (A Comparative Study of World Religions)
United Kingdom
(From Foreword of ‘Living in High Morale (Charhdee Kalaa)’
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Team AWAT