Swami Premanandaji, a direct disciple of Sri Ramakrishna was in charge of training the brahmacharis at Belur Math. Besides training in various spiritual exercises, the brahmacharis had to perform many daily chores, as Math could not afford to hire workers. One thing Premanandaji often insisted upon was that the brahmacharis should give full attention to the work they were doing. Once, while a brahmachari was asked to cut straw to feed the cows, he sliced his finger. Premanandaji came in and scolded him saying he was not yet ready to become a sannyasi, because if he could not concentrate on the work at hand, how could he concentrate during meditation and build up his monastic life.
If we can focus well on the work at hand, we can meditate well. If we are exercising, we should concentrate on the exercises. If we are doing housework, concentration should be on that. If studying, concentration should be on the subject at hand. This will help us to control our mind and thus have better meditation. The emphasis is focusing on today and whatever we are doing at the moment. The past is gone and we cannot get it back, nor can we replace it. Tomorrow has not arrived; so focus only on the present. Let our motto be ‘Mind, Here and Now’, reminding ourselves of this constantly and practising it as much as possible.
A popular poem titled ‘Look to This Day’ emphasises this idea very well:
Look to this day
for it is life,
the very life of life.
In its brief course lie all
the realities and truths of existence,
the joy of growth,
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