When Fate Strikes: How Heroes Rise from Crisis

Visiting a critically injured friend at the hospital, I felt relief that he had survived but also fear — what if my family faced this too? I wondered “How can there be such a cruel fate?”

But then I heard it — a dull thump, followed by the sharp tap of wood. I looked up and saw him. A young officer, barely older than me. His bright smile as he was calling out to his friends caught my attention. He was hopping on crutches, his leg recently amputated, yet still bringing over a small box of treats to share with his friends. I finally met a hero. Not because he was born like that, not because he was a decorated officer, but because of how he was rising above his circumstances.

How does one make such a choice?

I did not know him, but I will never forget him. He taught me, being a hero is not a matter of birth, it is a matter of choice.

What is a Crisis, really?

Life has since taken me many places, some bright and beautiful and others dark and dreary. Like best friends they follow each other. In times of loss, most often through hard work, help and endeavor you can recover what you lost or lacked.

A crisis is when life shuts a door and the loss feels irreversible, like a terminal diagnosis or the death of a loved one. Sometimes, multiple crises converge at once and while it’s becoming increasingly common, it’s nothing new.

It does happen. Look at it from ancient wisdom of the Bhagavad Gita, it is not a matter of if, it is only a matter of when.

Arjuna, the hero of Mahabharata, faced his own crisis. Expert at handling weapons but paralyzed by the onslaught of time. His emotional state as described in the Bhagavad Gita mirrors the weight of life’s challenges.

I feel the limbs of my body quivering and my mouth drying up. My whole body is trembling, my hair is standing on end, my bow Gāṇḍīva is slipping from my hand, and my skin is burning. I am now unable to stand here any longer. I am forgetting myself, and my mind is reeling. I see only causes of misfortune.

I, too, have felt the overwhelming weight of crisis — the sensation of being crushed by the weight of fate. Like Arjuna, I’ve found myself standing at a crossroads, unsure of what the next step should be. And in those moments, it’s easy to believe that misfortune is all that awaits.

The Power of a Little Finger: A lesson in perspective

In moments of overwhelming crisis, it can feel as if we are drowning in pain. But there is something to be learned about suffering. A Swami once posed a curious question to me that offered insight into how we view life’s challenges…

Tell me about the various ways in which my little finger could give me pleasure.

A strange question — but I gave it some thought and said it could help me clean my eye if there was something stuck in there.

But then he asked me a different question:

Tell me how many ways it can give you pain.

I immediately thought of a jammed finger and a splinter I had in my little finger as a child — quickly, I listed ten painful experiences

Then he said:

See, how much pain it can give you and how little pleasure there is? Analyse every part of your body and you will see it can give you way more pain than pleasure. This is the nature of the world. It is not meant to enjoy, it is meant to throw challenges at you.

I thought that was cruel, but then I reflected knowing the playfield is half the battle won. What is the value of perpetuating the delusion of Disneyland — better to understand where I am and what am up against. Only then can I truly find my way in life.

C.R.I.S.I.S: Spiritual Strategy for Resilience

Ready to take responsibility, ready to fight back — not with tears but with strategy and prayer, I started on my journey home. No expectations, no timelines, no judgements — just one baby step at a time.

As I look back, I call my model the C.R.I.S.I.S model.

C: Circumstances and Choices

Although we may feel defeated, overwhelmed, heartbroken — remember the circumstances are external to who you truly are. And every circumstance comes with a choice.

R: Responsibility for Attitude and Actions

You may or may not be responsible for what is happening to you — but remember your attitude, your response is your choice. Changing our attitude, we can see that CRISIS is not something happening to us — but it is happening for us.

I — Inspiration, A Vision for the future

When dreams are shattered, dream again. A fresh vision can reignite hope.

So, while the doors to opportunities might be shut, don’t close the door of your heart.

Life may not be the same again — but who said it cannot be sweet again?

Arjuna too felt that he saw no hope for the future — yes, materially maybe some doors were closed for him. But Krishna reminded him to think of Dharma — and what the world would look like if Dharma was firmly established. When that vision of a progressive world entered his heart — he started to feel hope again.

S — Surround with Shabda, Sanga and Shastra

Mental strength is treacherous. It’s there sometimes, but not always. That is the nature of the mind. Arjuna says in the Bhagavad Gita :

Cancala hi manah KrishnaThe mind, O dear Krishna, indeed is flickering

Recovery on sheer mental strength is an illusion — we need stable grounds. Stability needs spiritual strength and to find that it is important to surround ourselves with the right kind of sound or shabda. Specifically known in Sanskrit as Mantra Meditation.

Mantra trasyati sa eva mantraThat which liberates the mind is Mantra

The right kind of friends or Sanga will help ground us in spiritual reality.

I — Incremental Steps

When faced with cracking ice, all you can do is to take the next little step — hop to the next dot and do not underestimate the value of it. As Steve Jobs famously said

I didn’t see it then, but it turned out that getting fired from Apple was the best thing that could have ever happened to me. The heaviness of being successful was replaced by the lightness of being a beginner again, less sure about everything. It freed me to enter one of the most creative periods of my life.

S — Service or Seva to Something or someone bigger than oneself

And to bring it all together so it starts to take effect — we need service or Seva.

Most of our lives are spent just serving our plans, desires and senses. But when a person chooses to rise above limited selfishness to serve someone bigger than one-self — our full potential is unleashed.

The Gushing River — Bhagavad Gita Lessons in Crisis

Remembering Friedrich Nietzsche and how he endured a lifetime of illnesses, heartbreak, and betrayal — you name it. Yet, he never gave up his quest to rise above ordinary existence. He philosophized that by embracing suffering and transcending conventional values, one could become the Übermensch — a higher, more powerful version of oneself

If we want to get happiness or love, there are many impediments. But if we want to give, who can stop us?

Shrimad Bhagavatam, the ancient Vedic Encyclopedia explains how there is no material impediments to devotional service. In there, Queen Kunti, the mother of the great warrior and the protagonist of the Bhagavad Gita, prays to Krishna

Just like the river Ganges flows to the sea, Let my devotion flow unto thee

Little stones and boulders can block small streams, but where the powerful river flows, she can mold mountains and carve her way forward through rocks — just by the sheer force of her gushing waters.

When we speculate our identity as either strong or weak based on our mental strength, when we confuse who we are with our mind — anyone can put any idea, any fear in our consciousness.

Because we do not know for sure who we are — anyone can confuse us and rob us of our strength. But a crisis offers a unique opportunity.

When everything external is taken away, we are forced to find what can never be stolen

Lucky are those who in this life have the chance to face that fear of having nothing — but in that finding what you never knew you had.

As Nelson Mandela said, “Courage is not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it.”

The Chariot did not move — What Changed?

As I made my way through the Bhagavad Gita, I saw Arjuna’s inner dialouge transform. The one who was having a breakdown — was now feeling strong, fixed, clear headed and ready to move on.

nashta moho smritir labdha

My bewilderment is destroyed, and I have regained my intelligence

What changed? Did the enemies leave? Did people change their minds? Did the problems go away?

No — No one changed, no problem went away, and the Chariot had not moved an inch.

But the whole game changed — because Arjuna’s inner dialogue, his locus of control changed.

When we are no longer able to change a situation, we are challenged to change ourselves.

The Last of Human Freedoms — The Power to Choose

I read Anne Frank’s memoir in school. She was not much older than me. Her words still resonate:

I can shake off everything as I write, my sorrows disappear, my courage is reborn.

I write today, so my courage is reborn. And I pray that in reading my journey, you find your courage.

As Vicktor Frankl said in his famous work, Man’s search for purpose

Everything can be taken from a man (or woman) but one thing: the last of the human freedoms — to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s own way.

What little step can you take today — to shift your inner dialogue, like Arjuna, and carve a path through the rocks like the Ganges?