Success Is in Your Hands

Thomas Fuller once said, “Birds get caught in traps because of their feet, and humans get caught because of their tongues.”

Though the tongue is a small and seemingly weak part of the body, in reality, it plays a powerful role in a person’s life. A few words can either bring trouble or protect a person from it.

There was once a man who worked in a factory. The owner deeply valued his work and had great appreciation for his abilities. Then came a time when the factory faced a financial crisis. With great difficulty, the owner managed to pay the wages of the workers, but withheld this particular man’s salary.

This went on for several months. Feeling that he was being treated unfairly, the man grew upset. One day, he confronted the owner and spoke harshly.

That one moment of anger turned out to be very costly.

The owner had actually seen the man as one of his own. He had every intention of paying him back—and even giving him a raise when money became available. But those few harsh words changed everything.

Love turned into bitterness, and friendship turned into enmity. As a result, the owner withheld the salary further and eventually dismissed the man from the factory.

What followed was thirty years of tension and bitterness between the two.

Had the man simply remained silent, he would have gained much. Instead, by speaking in anger, he invited loss.

All of this happened because he couldn’t control his tongue.

There’s a Western proverb that says: “Choose the lesser of two evils.” In life, it’s rare to face a choice between something completely good and something completely bad. Most of the time, we must choose between two difficult options.

This man had two choices:

•  A temporary delay in salary.

•  Or a long-term loss of career and goodwill.

He couldn’t bear the temporary hardship and ended up choosing the permanent damage.

A Hindi poet once said: “A wound from a word hurts more than a wound from a whip.”

The wounds of words don’t bleed and don’t break bones—but they can hurt far more deeply than sticks or swords. And many people, unable to bear this invisible wound, end up making destructive choices.

But if a person learns to tolerate the wounds inflicted by words, they remain calm. They do not lose their presence of mind and are, as a result, in a much better position to solve their problems wisely.

In fact, this patience often becomes the very key to achieving what they wanted—something they would never have gained through reaction or anger.

Here’s a powerful example from history:

Booker T. Washington, a respected African-American leader in the United States, once needed to catch a train. He left home in a hurry and rushed onto the street to find a carriage.

He spotted a horse cart and said to the driver, “I’m running late. Please take me to the station as quickly as possible.”

The driver looked at him and replied coldly: “I’ve never driven my cart for a black man—and I’m not going to start now.”

Without a trace of anger, Booker Washington calmly said, “That’s fine. You can sit in the back—I’ll drive the cart.”

Hearing this, the driver was shocked. Silently, he got into the back seat.

Booker took the reins, drove the cart to the station, and caught his train.

Now imagine—what if he had responded with anger?

He would have made the situation worse. The driver would have dug in his heels and refused even more stubbornly.

But by replying to the insult with calmness, he softened the other man’s heart—and turned the situation in his favour.

The Zarathustra once said: “Doing good is not a duty, it is a benefit—because doing good adds to your own happiness.”

That is the truth: By responding to bad behaviour with goodness, you benefit yourself first.

And this is the secret of success. Whether in speech, in action, or in attitude, your success often depends not on what others do, but on how you respond.

After the Leg Was Broken

“The one who can make a firm resolve—nothing is impossible for him.”

This saying of Emerson reveals a profound truth of life: In this world, the possibilities for a human being are endless. If a person possesses true determination, they can turn every difficulty into ease. Every obstacle becomes a stepping stone on the path to success.

Possibility never ends. This is not just an idea—it is a reality. Human history is replete with examples that prove this truth. Here, we present a real and inspiring example from recent times.

Sudha Chandran, a dancer from South India, is that example.

At the age of sixteen, on 2 May 1981, she met with an accident in which her right leg was broken. She was immediately admitted to a local hospital. Unfortunately, the doctors made a serious mistake—they applied a plaster without giving an anti-tetanus injection or taking the necessary precautions.

As the pain worsened, her parents took her to a major hospital in Madras.

There, doctors diagnosed tetanus, and despite all efforts, her condition didn’t improve. In the end, her leg had to be amputated below the knee.

Someone once said, “Love removes all obstacles.”

This came true in Sudha’s life—her deep love for dance overcame everything.

After the amputation, she would often cry and ask, “I want to dance. Will I ever dance again?”

She was treated like any other patient—and eventually fitted with an artificial limb called the Jaipur Foot. Its inventor, Dr. P. K. Sethi, came to know about Sudha’s dream through her teacher.

Dr. Sethi said, “If Sudha truly has the desire, she will be able to dance like a person with normal limbs. She just needs to be strong enough to put in extra effort and bear the initial pain.”

Another saying came true for Sudha: “Pain is the price of happiness. Whoever can bear pain will surely attain happiness.”

Sudha agreed without hesitation. She began practising—patiently, tirelessly—on her artificial leg. And with time, she returned to being a complete dancer.

On 1 April 1984, Sudha Chandran gave a public performance in Bombay. Experts were in attendance. They said she danced so gracefully that it was impossible to tell which of her legs was artificial. (Northern India Patrika, 22 April 1984)

For the goal of dance, a young woman made such an extraordinary effort. Then what about those who set their sights on even higher goals—like truth, justice, and righteousness?

The principle is simple: greater challenges demand greater effort. This is not merely a quote—it is a law of life.

A person who faces obstacles can still achieve a successful life, just like anyone else. The only condition is: they must be ready to work harder than others, and patiently bear the pain of the early steps.

Adjusting with Circumstances

Herbert L. Nicholas once wrote about a story he had read in a book.

It was about an old man who had spent his entire life facing continuous hardships. Despite this, he always remained happy and content.

Someone once asked him the secret behind his peace. He replied: “I learned to cooperate with the inevitable.”

In other words, he learned to adjust to what cannot be avoided. This is a timeless lesson. Many things in life are beyond our control. Fighting them doesn’t help—it only creates unnecessary confusion and mental stress.

Instead, the wise approach is to accept such situations calmly. This allows us to preserve our energy—and use it in areas where our efforts can truly make a difference.

This is a basic rule of life—not just for individuals, but also for entire communities and nations.

When we learn to work with reality rather than fight against it, we unlock greater strength, peace, and progress.

All India Radio, New Delhi,
on 15-16 May 1983.