It is too easy to be nice with someone who is good to us. But how difficult it is to deal with those who are nasty to us? Tolerance is celebrated as a divine quality and intolerance is touted as the weapon of the demoniac. We long to develop the quality of ‘tolerance’ but we easily succumb to intolerance when confronted with unpleasant situations and circumstances. After venting out our inner angst we realize our mistake but sadly it is too late by that time. But why do we lack ‘tolerance’? Theoretically we do understand the gravity and necessity of ‘tolerance’ but practically it is too difficult to adopt it in our life. If we throw a stone in a small pool of water then the entire water body gets disturbed whereas if a stone is thrown in a huge ocean then it hardly makes any impact there. The ocean has depth whereas the small pudding of water is shallow, and so the difference in the impact.
Our reaction to any provoking situation is determined by the spiritual depth which we have cultivated through our sadhana. We immediately get provoked because our heart is shallow and so it does not have the ability to withstand any unpleasant situation. But if we have nurtured our spiritual life prudently then we can easily endure any provoking situation without being disturbed. If we want to progress in our life then tolerance is of immense importance. Lord Chaitanya Mahaprabhu in his siksastakamprayers has stated that one should be more tolerant than a tree and more humble than a blade of grass. In that state, Lord Chaitanya says one can chant the holy name of Krishna constantly and with deep love.
